After Allegations, ‘Justice League Director’ Hits Out at “Rude Cast
Joss Whedon, the filmmaker, has finally responded to the numerous allegations of misconduct against him and harassment he faced while working on Justice League and Buffy The Vampire Slayer.
Whedon talked to New York Magazine about his role in taking over Justice League after Zack Snyder’s sudden departure. Whedon helped with extensive rewrites.
Whedon stated that they asked him to fix it and thought he could help. He also said that he regrets taking on the project.
Buffy’s creator stated that he believed that he was originally here to advise and write but that it became obvious to the director that Warner Bros. had “lost trust in Snyder’s vision and wanted to give him full control.” WB representatives have denied the claim. Snyder has also spoken publicly about his decision to leave the project after his daughter’s suicide.
Whedon was the director of Justice League, and he oversaw approximately 40 days of reshoots. He admitted there was tension between him and the actors.
Snyder encouraged more creativity and freedom in scriptwriting, but Whedon preferred that the lines be read exactly as it was written. According to an anonymous crew member, this “didn’t go down very well at all”, and Whedon soon declared that he had never worked with “a ruder group”.
Whedon says that Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot told Whedon at one point that he didn’t understand the workings of superhero movies.
Gadot has claimed that Whedon threatened to harm her career if Gadot didn’t follow his instructions to his satisfaction.
Whedon responded to the allegations by saying, “I don’t threaten people.” “Who does that?” Whedon responded that Gadot “misunderstood” him because English isn’t her native tongue.
Whedon stated that English is not her first language and can be irritatingly flowery in her speech. Whedon recalled a conversation with Gadot where she joked that she would have to tie Gadot to a railroad track to cut a scene and then “over his dead body”.
Whedon stated, “Then I was informed that I had spoken about her dead body and tied her to the railroad track.” Gadot stated that this was false and had not misunderstood or misinterpreted what was being said.
Ray Fisher, the Cyborg actor, has spoken out often about how Whedon treated him and other members of the Justice League set. As we know, Fisher has a larger role in Synder Cut. However, Cyborg’s role was “downsized” by Whedon. Fisher says that Fisher cut scenes that challenged stereotypes.
“It feels as if I’m taking notes right here,” Whedon told Fisher when he talked to Fisher about the rewrites. The Hollywood Reporter notes. “And I don’t like taking notes from anyone – not even Robert Downey Jr.”
Fisher also accused Whedon, accusing him of abusing power and even going so far as to change the skin tone of actors because he doesn’t like it.
Whedon stated that he was shocked by these claims and maintained that he had given the movie a “lighter look” through postproduction. This included all faces. Whedon also suggested that Cyborg’s part in his film was cut due to “logically making no sense”, and Fisher’s acting wasn’t very good.
Whedon spoke of Fisher as a “malevolent force.” “We’re referring to a bad actor in both of these senses.”
