What happened to Julie Taymor?

[binau]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 5:01pm

Is she retired? I assume she is set for life on Lion King royalties so doesn't need to work. I didn't realise she was already in her 70s, time is flying by. 

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 5:16pm

She’s currently working on THE GRAND DELUSION, an upcoming musical project with composer Elliot Goldenthal. It is an adaptation of Thomas Mann’s novella THE TRANSPOSED HEADS. The production has undergone workshops, including a notable session in May 2024. 

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 5:19pm

Spider-Man was enough to end anyone's career.

[Dolly80]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 5:32pm

If I was her- I’d just live on those Lion King dollars!

Updated On: 1/29/26 at 05:32 PM

[spicemonkey]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 5:46pm

Broadway61004 said: "Spider-Man was enough to end anyone's career."

Yea, that epic failure can’t be written off from the resume. 

 

If I have Lion King paychecks coming in for the rest of my life, I would retire and open a book store , hehe

Updated On: 1/29/26 at 05:46 PM

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 6:19pm

Broadway61004 said: "Spider-Man was enough to end anyone's career."

I know not everyone on this board is the biggest fan of Sweaty Oracle, but he brought up a good point: The Lion King is the highest grossing piece of theatre ever made. It has put more money into the Broadway ecosystem than any show ever has or likely ever will, and a lot of that had to do with Julie Taymor's direction.

Surely by now, that's enough to atone for one flop that she wasn't even working on by the time it opened.

[Merkin2]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 6:29pm

I saw her at the ford foundation a couple years ago for Gloria Steinem’s 90th birthday party.  Apparently Julie Taymor made a documentary or something on her. 

[James885]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 6:34pm

Yeah Spider-Man was bad, but I still think her version was a lot more interesting and inventive than the version that eventually opened - warts and all. I also loved her take on Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Regardless of what she chooses to do next, she’s had the kind of enviable career that most directors can only dream of.

Updated On: 1/29/26 at 06:34 PM

[Timon3]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 7:04pm

Do we know what share the creative get? And how far it goes down the food chain?

[Ensemble1698878795]

Posted: 1/29/26 at 7:21pm

Timon3 said: "Do we know what share the creative get? And how far it goes down the food chain?"

I believe she also designed some of the puppets. She's piling in 5 digits at minimum per week - maybe six with the international companies.