Joss Whedon Speaks on Avengers, Dr Horrible Sequel, Firefly and More
By Josh Lyons on Apr 10, 2012 with Comments 4
Joss Whedon is something of a god among geeks. Personally, I never understood all the appeal. I never cared for his work such as Buffy and Angel. I don’t find Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog to be exceptionally great, either. However, Firefly I absolutely loved and The Avengers is looking to be good.
As a special treat to fans, Whedon took to Reddit today to have a Q&A with fans. During the event, Whedon touched on such topics as a Dr Horrible sequel and the issues behind a second season of Firefly. You can check out what he had to say about those things and more below.
Up first, Whedon gave us a bit of info on The Avengers. The writer/director commented on the fact that Scarlett Johannson has been portrayed as nothing but a “hot girl” in the movie’s marketing thus far. This is something fans have been complaining about, and something that is unusual for a Whedon character:
All I can say is that Scarlett gets to do a lot more than be hot in Avengers. It’s definitely dispiriting to have a woman play an heroic role and then be reduced to body parts by fan commentary, but that can only change slowly. And is.
Whedon was also asked about the casting for the Hulk and to impact of Edward Norton not returning:
It let me cast Mark Ruffalo, one of the best and sweetest actors I know, and, I think, THE definitive Bruce Banner. (Apologies to Mr. Bixby.)
So, Mark Ruffalo is the definitive Bruce Banner? Hmm, I’ll have to see that to believe it.
In more Avengers talk, Whedon was asked about the challenges, if any, of working with such an ensemble cast:
Handling that many stars was easy, because they looked after each other. They cared about the work. They one time did what I said (well, asked). No, it really was a dream ensemble.
As for the Dr. Horrible sequel, Whedon gave us an update that should please fans:
We’re not shooting right now, we’re still in the early stages of writing. But we hope to make a great deal of progress this summer. And you can expect the death of someone you love… Yes, the original cast will be back for Dr H 2, but Penny will be…um…I don’t want to say ‘decomposing…
On to the topic I’m more interested in: Firefly. When Whedon was asked about the prospect of a Kickstarted campaign for a second season, he had a witty, but heartbreaking statement to make:
Step 2: Cancel Castle. Step 3: Cancel Homeland. Step 4: Generally destroy everybody’s careers. Step 5: Avoid Step 2.
So, basically it would me destroying the progress Firefly‘s actors have made in their career and cancelling some hit shows. Not a very sensible step to be taken.
Along those lines, Whedon was also asked about the possibility of creating his own internet TV station to present his work, and the work of others that he liked:
I would LOVE to follow in the footsteps of Felicia Day — had in fact pitched this concept to my agent years ago. But right now i’m fielding five movies and I’m realizing that there is such a thing as over-reaching, unless you’re Felicia Day…
Given his history with dabbling in it, Whedon was also asked about the possibility of him doing a full-scale musical one day:
Full scale musical? The biggest non-spaceship-involving dream of my life. But it’s a huge life commitment.
Joss found time to also take umbrage with always being referred to as some sort of habitual character killer:
Actually, I’m, no offense, very tired of being labelled as “the guy who kills people”. Shakespeare (he’s this hot new writer) does it way more than me, and everyone’s all excited about how he, as it were, holds a mirror up to nature, while I’m like the Jason Voorhees of the writing community. Unfair.
Also, probably Buffy’s Mom.
Speaking of his characters, Whedon answered a question posed about his favorite characters to write for:
Favorite characters? Jeez. Spike, Andrew, Illyria, River, Captain Hammer, Loki, the Cheese Man… hell, I love them all, or I wouldn’t write them. But I tend to the left of center.
The hardest was always Angel. How to make a decent, handsome, stalwart hero interesting — tough. Angelus, on the other hand…
Earlier, you’ll notice Whedon mentioned Shakespeare. Whedon gave us insight into why he chose to do Much Ado:
I wanted to drag Shakespeare from obscurity. I’ve been a fan my whole life, and it’s time other people started noticing him!
On working on small projects versus huge studio work, as well as his progressive politics, Whedon had this to say:
I’m absolutely devoted to working outside the mainstream, or at least in smaller venues and on my own terms. (My terms : unconditional surrender. Plus back-end.)
As for my political bent, it comes from how I was raised — and my own very strong sense of being helpless and tiny and terrified (that goes away, right?). The only trouble it’s ever caused me is that once you take a stance as a person, people are always using that as a yardstick in your work, which can be kind of limiting.
On his past experience working with Pixar on Toy Story:
It was so much fun. They were in this crappy, sprawling space in the middle of nowhere, and I spent most of my time with Lasster, Stanton, Doctor and the late, very great Joe Ramft, just making jokes, pitching ideas and watching them get sharpie head-aches from sketching. We all learned so much from that experience. mostly about sharpies.
On the future of Angel had it not ended:
Season six of Angel would have kicked all manner of ass. And Illyria would have manifested as Fred often enough to become very confused about her identity.
And now I’m sad again.To read more, you can head over to the Q&A Session
Source: Reddit
Filed Under: Movie News
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This was a great interview, but then again Joss is one of my favorite writer/directors. I can’t wait to see his take on Much Ado.
I’m not nearly as confident in Joss as most (especially Whedonites). He’s pretty much hit or miss with me. However, when he gets it right…he definitely gets it right. Avengers was much better than I expected (though still not the best comic book movie like some state).
I think I’ll definitely have to skip the Much Ado adaptation though.
Did you watch Cabin in the Woods? I’m not the biggest fan of Whedon either, but I love Firefly, The Avengers, and Dr. Horrible.
Colin Biggs recently posted..‘Man of Steel’ Teaser Trailer
What did you think of the Hulk now you’ve, presumably, seen the movie. i’m pretty happy to give Ruffalo the definitive crown.