Special Coverage American Idol'Lost' CoverageSex and the City MovieBox Office Game (win DVDs)
Page 2 of 2

Walking the herring-thin line between comic chaos and Broadway sentimentality meant parting with some beloved moments. (Don't worry — the most sacred vache still gets pitchez-ed, with Gallic gall supplied by Azaria.) It also meant devising a subplot about taking the Grail quest to the Great White Way. ''Python always refers to the form in which it finds itself,'' explains Idle. Nichols dubs the approach ''Pirandello in reverse. . .We have a play and we take it apart.''

While tightening up the storytelling, the creators labored to preserve some of the film's anarchy. ''That's why when things go wrong in this show, it's never a problem,'' says David Hyde Pierce, who plays brave Sir Robin. ''Sets fall down. People who are supposed to get shot with arrows don't. Cows take a left when they're supposed to take a right. And the audience loves it.'' But errant cows are nothing compared to the opening-night pressure — and the prospect of a rare reunion of the original Pythons. Says Azaria: ''I hope I can concentrate.'' At least enough to fart in their general direction.


Sign up for EW.com's The 25 newsletter!

Stay in the know and get EW.com's top 5 stories, 5 days a week (sent weekday afternoons).
Posted Mar 21, 2005 | Published in issue #812 Mar 25, 2005 | Order Article Reprints
Page 2 of 2