‘Time Bandits’ Star on Creating the Ice Age, Improvising & More Behind-the-Scenes Secrets

Although Time Bandits began as a 1981 cult classic film, it has earned itself a modern makeover thanks to comedy duo Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. New episodes of the first season have been dropping weekly on Apple TV+, with the final two episodes out on Wednesday, August 21.

The show follows Kevin Haddock (Kal-El Tuck), a preteen history nerd who finds himself traveling through space and time with a gang of amateur thieves who call themselves the Time Bandits. The crew, led by Penelope (Lisa Kudrow), find themselves on the run from their former boss and godly overlord, Supreme Being (Waititi),while simultaneously being tracked by his spiritual opposite, Wrongness (Clement). As they make their way through time via portals, they’re able to learn more about the different historical environments they find themselves in, thanks to Kevin serving as their personal history genius. In return, Kevin is able to travel to places he’s only read about in textbooks, from ancient Troy to London in the ’90s.

As the end of Season 1 nears, TV Insider spoke to Tuck about what it was like behind the scenes, what fans might expect in the final episodes, and what he wishes he had in his own wardrobe.

This week, the Time Bandits got to visit the Ice Age. What was it like filming in the “snow” with the “wooly mammoths”?

Kal-El Tuck: It was really fun being in the snow. Of course, they couldn’t use real snow, so they used salt on the ground, and it was really fun and nice to be in. It felt like you were in the Ice Age, and it was fun to act in a different weather type.

Apple TV+

In the most recent episode, the show pulls a Back to the Future and allows Kevin to meet his dad when he was younger, and he’s able to better understand his father. Was there anything about Time Bandits, or that episode, that changed how you see parts of your own life after filming?

[For] that specific episode, it was strange, because when me and my mum would go onto set, she would remember everything, but I don’t know much about back then. It was nice to experience a place where my parents lived—just a different time, but, like, one where other people still existed who are still alive today, who had that experience, so I could have that as well.

You have more scenes with Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi coming up. What was it like acting alongside two really big improvisers? Did they improvise for this show, and were you allowed to get in on it?

Yeah, everyone improvised. When I did a scene with Taika, he would improvise all the time, and the scene would go in a completely different way. If someone else improvises, you can’t really stick to the script, you also had to sort of improvise, so it was really fun and a good challenge to try and keep up with their improvising. Jemaine was [the] same, he really liked to improvise, and it would lead to such funny things, like on Madame Chung’s ship, I say “Chinese pirates and Chinese parrots.” I never was supposed to say “parrots,” I messed up my line on “pirates,” and then everyone started laughing, and they thought, “Well, we’ll add it in.”

You also worked with Lisa Kudrow, a huge comedy legend. Was there any advice that she gave you on set that might have stuck with you?

We can make mistakes and then learn from them. No one can get a whole scene perfectly correct [the] first time. You can make mistakes—you just need to do better next time.

Apple TV+

I saw that you got to attend “stunt school,” where you got to learn about different stunts and perform them. Is there anything specifically that you want to share that you learned there?

I did get to do a couple of my own stunts, like when Kevin jumps off of Madame Chung’s ship, they did make a big ship. I stood on the top, I put all my costume on, they put the wire underneath the costume, and I just jumped, and they literally just catch me in the last second. It was basically a free-fall until the last little bit. That was a fun stunt.

Another great stunt is where he jumps off, and then it’s the next scene into Stonehenge where he’s getting dragged. It’s hard to do it [because] you’re falling, but then you’re on the ground. But it was still so fun, just people dragging.

Ah. The magic of television.

Exactly, yeah.

Are there any Easter eggs in Kevin’s bedroom?

There is a picture of me and my actual dad in there, so my actual dad’s in the series, which I think is pretty cool. It was on the headboard of the bed, inside that little cupboard.

Speaking of props, did you take anything from set?

I didn’t take anything, but I did tell one of the directors, Iain Morris, I really wanted the hat of Kevin, and I got it. It’s on my shelf, and whenever I wake up, I just look at the hat, and it’s nice to have. A nice memory.

Very cool trinket. I know that a lot of people have probably asked you which historical period you’d want to go back and live, or see, but I’m wondering if you could go back in time and grab a historical figure and bring them to the present and introduce them to life today, which historical figure would you want to bring?

Maybe Albert Einstein or Picasso? Someone smart who was beyond their time, then going to the “beyond their time.”

Related

How Does New 'Time Bandits' Series Differ From Original Movie?

When I was watching the show, I was thinking “I really wish some of these styles were still in fashion today, so that I could walk around in chainmail, and that would be acceptable.” Is there any part of your costume that you wore during the series that you wish that you could wear more regularly?

My favorite costume that I ever wore was in Harlem. I had a fur coat, and we were walking out and you can see I’ve got the biggest smile on my face—I wasn’t really acting, I was just so happy that I had that on. It felt so nice, it was such a good costume. I loved it.

Looking ahead to Season 2, is there anything you’d like to explore? Character dynamics that you wish that you could see, or specific time period that you want the show to tackle?

I think a good time period they could go to would be maybe where the Bandits got their specific costumes. Penelope, she’s got a navy outfit, so it would be cool if it explained where she got that. Alto’s a bit more Italian, like, French, so we go there. That type of stuff would be cool.

Are there any character interactions that you wish to see more of, or any other actors that you wish to act in a scene with in Season 2?

All the actors were amazing. I loved the actors who were on set. We worked so well together. Everyone was friends [and] even off set, when we went to a little tent waiting for our next scene, we would play concentration and everyone would join, and it was just so fun. I don’t know anyone we could add, but there definitely will be new people in Season 2.

Is there’s anything you can tease about Episodes 9 and 10? What can you say about what to expect in the season finale?

Maybe we’ll meet new characters, [and] maybe we’ll see an old character.

Time Bandits, Wednesdays, Apple TV+