Joss Whedon, director of The Avengers, Buffy or Justice League of 2017, was accused of misbehavior by multiple members of his filming. Today he breaks the silence by acknowledging some blame, but denying all the accusations and largely blaming Snyder fans. “I don’t know who started it, but I do know in whose name they did it.”
Joss Whedon once was a true mass idol, revered as a god by fans of his series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel or Firefly, but also by the academics of television fiction.
Numerous studies dissected the influence of his work, his witty and witty scripts, his clever humor and his personalities.strong and complex female rattles that demolished stereotypes, something that even made him become a self-proclaimed feminist icon.
In five years, however, the situation has turned 180 degrees. In 2017, Whedon took the reins from the movie Justice League replacing Zack Snyder, who left for personal reasons. The film was a resounding critical and commercial flop, with most fans agreeing to blame Whedon.
However, the Whedon debacle began a few months before the premiere. His ex-wife, Kai Cole, published a harsh article titled “Joss Whedon is a hypocrite preaching feminist ideals“When she learned that Whedon had been cheating on her for 15 years with actresses from her series or even her fans.
Shortly after, and while the movement “ReleaseTheSnyderCut“gained bellows, the accusations arose. Ray Fisher, The Cyborg actor was the most mediatic, accusing Whedon’s behavior on the set of Justice League was despotic, abusive and unacceptable.
Fisher recounted that Whedon wanted to reduce Fisher’s role in the film, accusing him of racism (also Geoff Johns, whom he blames for allowing Whedon).
Warner launched an investigation into the matter, and although the results were not published, Whedon was soon after fired from the series he had created, The Nevers.
What does Whedon have to say about it? According to the director of The Avengers, none of Fisher’s claims are real or worthy of attention, whom he describes as “a malevolent force, a bad actor both ways“.
Whedon, who has been inactive for years, has broken his silence in a extensive interview (Spring 2021) on vulture, where he explains that Fisher’s role in Justice League was cut because “the story didn’t make logical sense” and that he seemed like a bad actor, though he says he spent hours talking about the changes with Fisher in a friendly and respectful way.
But Fisher wasn’t the only one to accuse Whedon of inappropriate behavior: hurtful comments, sometimes throwing sexists and racists; bad manners on the set and less patience with the actors, whom he did not usually tolerate any creative input.
Gal Gadot went on to say that Whedon threatened to destroy her career, while Whedon blamed some of the actress’s statements on misunderstandings with the language “because English is not her mother tongue.”
“English is not her first language, and I tend to be very flowery in my language. I remember we argued over a scene that he wanted to cut, and I jokingly told him that to remove it had to tie him to a train track and pass over his corpse. Then they told me that I had said something about her dead body and tying her to a train track“.”I understood perfectlyGadot said afterwards.
The most visceral thing was when Charisma Carpenter, an actress from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, claimed that Whedon called her fat when she was pregnant, created a hostile and toxic work environment and that, in private meetings, he psychologically crushed her.
Multiple Buffy cast members supported Carpenter, including leading lady Sarah Michelle Gellar, and it wasn’t even the first time Buffy cast members had confessed to Whedon’s bad ways.
At the interview, Whedon acknowledges that he was not “civilized” at that time, but largely justify their behavior (“Sometimes you had to scream. It was a very young cast and it was easy for it to become a party“) Y denies all accusations, like that of Buffy’s costume designer Cynthia Bergstrom, who claims that Whedon he grabbed his arm and dug his nails in hurting him.
He also acknowledges that he did not act correctly when he found out that Carpenter was pregnant, but denies calling her fat, and says that most of his experiences with Charisma were delightful.
“Sometimes it was hard for her to say her lines, but nobody said a punch line better than herWhedon says. In 2021, when Carpenter confessed his bad experiences, Carpenter blamed Whedon and the anxiety he felt for his acting problems.
Whedon, remarried and having been in therapy for his sex addiction for years, blames much of the negative discourse around him. to the SnyderCut movement. “I don’t know who started it, but I do know in whose name they did it.“.
He claims that Snyder’s superfans attacked him as a bad feminist and a bad husband. “They don’t give a shit about feminism. My ex-wife made me a target, and people have cynically exploited it“.
“Could I have handled my marriage better? Of course. Could I have been a better showrunner? Absolutely. Should I have been nicer?According to the Vulture, Whedon hesitated, questioning whether being more calm and direct might have compromised his job. He wanted people to like him, which means that by being direct, people thought he was tough.
“The beginnings of the Internet lifted me up and the modern Internet has brought me down. symmetry is perfectWhedon acknowledges wryly.
He regrets that the people “has used any word that can be used as a weapon in the modern age to make him seem like a monster abuser. I think I’m one of the nicest showrunners out there.“.
Leave a Reply