Taika Waititi taps Friends alum Lisa Kudrow to star in new Apple TV series Time Bandits

Lisa Kudrow in Friends
(Image credit: ABC)

Lisa Kudrow is set to lead Time Bandits, a new Apple TV series directed and executive-produced by Taika Waititi.

Kudrow will play Penelope in the new series, a television adaptation of Terry Gilliam's 1981's adventure fantasy of the same name which was first announced back in 2019. Time Bandits follows a young boy named Kevin (Craig Warnock) taken on an adventure through time by a band of thieves who steal treasure from various points in history. The A-list cast included Sean Connery, John Cleese, and Shelley Duvall. According to Deadline, the new series is described as a "comedic journey through time and space with a ragtag group of thieves and their newest recruit: an eleven-year-old history nerd."

The cast of the new series includes Kal-El Tuck (Unseeing Evil), Charlyne Yi (Knocked Up), Tadhg Murphy (Conversations with Friends), Roger Jean Nsengiyumva (You Don't Know Me), Kiera Thompson (Martyrs Lane), Rachel House (Heartbreak High), and Rune Tente (Eddie the Eagle). Waititi will direct the first two episodes of the series, which has been ordered for a 10-episode first season by Apple TV in conjunction with Paramount Television Studios.

Waititi is quite busy right now what with directing What We Do in the Shadows, directing and acting on Our Flag Means Death, and helming the upcoming comedy sports drama Next Goal Wins. Kudrow recently starred the movie musical Better Late than Never, and is set to star in Craig Johnson's upcoming horror comedy The Parenting alongside Brian Cox and Edie Falco.

For more, check out our list of the 100 best shows of the decade.

Lauren Milici
Senior Writer, Tv & Film

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ currently based in the Midwest. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.