My compulsion to always be working has become less strong and my current business is purely down to this enormous alimony. If I wasn’t doing this I’d be making documentaries about wildlife and other subjects that interest me.

Cleese frames his late-career workload as less a matter of artistic drive than financial necessity, using blunt humor to puncture the romantic idea that famous performers work only for passion. By contrasting “current business” with a preferred alternative—making wildlife documentaries—he implies a gap between what he is paid to do (commercial entertainment, touring, media appearances) and what he would choose if unburdened by obligations. The line also functions as social commentary on divorce settlements and the way personal legal/financial arrangements can shape public creative output. Its self-deprecating candor invites sympathy while maintaining a comic edge.