What actually happened with Joss Whedon?
Joss Whedon’s name used to be synonymous with witty dialogue, strong female protagonists, and groundbreaking TV. I literally used to uphold him as my inspiration as a writer, and his fall from grace has been so hard and sad. Accusations of workplace misconduct and abusive behaviour have surfaced from multiple actors and crew members who worked with him over the years.
The controversy surrounding Whedon hit a turning point in 2021, when Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel actress Charisma Carpenter publicly accused him of being abusive and unprofessional on set. In a detailed statement, she claimed that Joss Whedon created a toxic work environment, belittled her, and even called her “fat” while she was pregnant. According to Carpenter, he fired her from Angel after she gave birth, which she believes was a form of retaliation.
Her statement resulted in several other actors coming forward and speaking out. Several former Buffy cast members including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Michelle Trachtenberg and Amber Benson either directly supported Carpenter’s claims or hinted at their own negative experiences.
Joss Whedon explaining Buffy on set
After this came the Justice League controversy. Ray Fisher, who played Cyborg in the 2017 film, accused Whedon of “gross, abusive, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable” behaviour during reshoots. Gal Gadot later revealed that she also had issues with Whedon, saying he threatened her career when she questioned some of his creative choices.
Joss Whedon stayed silent on the allegations for a while. In early 2022, he finally addressed the entire thing in an interview with New York Magazine / Vulture.
In this interview, Joss Whedon admitted that he was not always “civil” on set but denied being abusive. He dismissed Ray Fisher’s claims as a “bad-faith attack” and suggested that Fisher was a bad actor, both on-screen and off. When asked about Charisma Carpenter, he didn’t outright deny her allegations but implied that she was making a bigger deal out of things than necessary. He also made some bizarre comments about Gal Gadot, claiming that English wasn’t her first language and that she must have misunderstood him. Gal Gadot, who literally speaks English fluently, responded to this with a very blunt statement that she “understood him perfectly.”
This interview did not go down well – and Joss Whedon has taken a firm backseat in the industry and hasn’t worked on anything high profile since. It remains to be seen if Joss Whedon will comment on the Buffy reboot since he’s not said anything yet. It is likely he’ll get some credit considering he is the original creator of characters who will be used in the sequel series.
