Joss Whedon

Exclusive: Catching Up with Joss Whedon

There are some creators who are so popular among genre fans, especially those that populate the internet, that they can do no wrong. Like Kevin Smith and Guillermo del Toro, Joss Whedon became one of those creators after creating the popular television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel. The popularity of those shows might be why there’s always almost immediate buzz among Whedon’s fans whenever a new project of his is announced.

Over the summer, Whedon directed his first feature film, Serenity, which continued the FOX television show Firefly, but sadly, the fanbase for that show wasn’t enough to keep the movie afloat in theatres.

Undaunted, Universal Pictures releases it on DVD this week (read our review) in hopes of finding more of an audience over the holiday season, and ComingSoon.net had a chance to talk to the creator about where his head was at in terms of the movie and his follow-up projects.

CS: With "Buffy," you started with a movie and turned it into a TV show; with "Serenity", you went in reverse. How did that come about?

Joss Whedon: Well, you know, it was just circumstance in both cases that led to this weird parallel. I felt like the story wasn’t told, that’s the one thing that is common to both of them. The movie itself, well that’s somebody else’s vision, and the TV show, I said "But wait, I haven’t told you my vision yet, because you cancelled me." So they have that in common, but ultimately, it really was just a weird coincidence, and I suppose a certain amount of tenacity is unrealistic grasping on my part.

CS: It’s kind of a rarity to be able to finish the story once something’s gone off of TV. Did you write the script and shop it on the basis of finishing the story?

Whedon: I got Mary Parent at Universal to watch the show. I told her this is what I want to make a movie out of, and she said, "I’m interested. I like these characters." They had support for it before I even had a script, and when they said, "We’re interested. We like this world, we like this cast. We think there’s a real movie here." I said, "Okay, now go away, Goodbye. I gotta go figure out what it is." It was sort of a backwards process.

CS: And you were able to keep all of the original cast from the show, which is also sort of rare. Was that part of the deal?

Whedon: No, that was the deal. That wasn’t part of the deal. That was all of the deal. There was no question. I wanted to tell this story, and it’s about these people, and these people are played by these actors. That’s just how it is, and they knew that there was no questioning it, nor did they want to. They thought the same of the actors that I did, that they were very compelling and that they could carry a film.

CS: Obviously, there’s a fanaticism behind all of your television shows, and the Browncoats became almost as nutty as the Trekkies for a few moments there. How do you explain this phenomenon of how you get that sort of fan base going behind your shows?

Whedon: To me, you know, I think ultimately you want to create an idea that really pops, but then it rests on the characters. It rests on the idea of how much you are in love with your characters. It really is that if you latch onto them then the love is on a different level, then if they just say "Wow, that was cool."

CS: How did the fans react to the death of one of the main characters?

Whedon: Some of them were extremely angry. Many of them were very sad, but most of them understood that it was necessary for the storytelling.

CS: And I assume that this won’t be like the death of Spock, where if you get another chance to make a movie, you’ll bring him back?

Whedon: No, we’re not in that kind of universe. I mean, I do actually...that was the Buffy-verse. No, but the point of Serenity is that it’s the [real] world, not fantasy. It is in fact the most down-to-earth story I’ve ever told, with the exception of the fact that one of the characters is psychic, there are no fantastical elements in it. It’s just people, they just happen to be in space.

CS: What’s going to happen with the "Serenity" franchise now? Are you just going to put it on the backburner?

Whedon: Yeah, you know, that’s pretty much it. It was hard to make and I’m very tired. I need some sleep, and then we’ll see if people are interested in more, than I have more say.

CS: Do you think that the Browncoats will still survive and become like the fans of "Star Trek" after that show was cancelled?

Whedon: You know ,who can say? I think that there’s something that brings them together. Obviously, right now, this story has been told, so I don’t think there will be the same level of intensity, but the community that was built I think exists beyond the story. That’s why we do it.

CS: And is it possibly something that may be kept alive on the SCI FI Channel?

Whedon: Yeah, they’re rerunning it again.

CS: As far as the DVD of the movie, will there be a lot of extra stuff on there for those who saw the movie already in theatres?

Whedon: Yes, of course. I don’t think you can legally release a DVD that doesn’t have a lot of extra stuff; I’ve seen DVDs of "Beethoven’s Second" with 40 minutes of extras, where you’re like, "Where did that stuff come from?" But no, we had a crew working with us the whole time, because this film does have kind of a bizarre genesis, so we thought it would be worth documenting, even when we were at conventions before production. They sort of got the entire experience, showing up one day to get their footage, and they really sort of stayed with us the whole time. They have a lot of footage of me eating, which I kept asking them to shoot.

CS: As far as your experience with the Hollywood studio system, has this experience soured you at all on how it markets your movies based on the fact that the movie didn’t deliver as well as expected?

Whedon: You know, I learned, as one does, an enormous amount. There’s things that one would have done differently had one been in charge, but ultimately, I found that I was working with very collaborative people, and we did get some things right and some not so much, and you try to take all that.

CS: Are you still happy with the decision to use the ship’s name, "Serenity," as the title of the movie?

Whedon: Yeah, yeah, you know, it’s what the movie’s about, and for the fans, they would know what it means, and if you’re not a fan, they wouldn’t have to wonder about "Firefly," and go "Didn’t I hear about that already?"

CS: As far as your next project "Goner." Do you think that will be a little less intense in terms of getting it made compared to "Serenity"?

Whedon: It’s more intense and less intense. It takes place now, so I don’t have to build a universe, but it’s not a movie without fantasy. Everything I do is fantasy. I love fantasy. So that’s where I’m always going to hang my hat, which means I’m always going to have some sort of effects.

CS: But that’s not going to be related at all to the "Buffy" world, right?

Whedon: It is not.

CS: Will you try to get "Goner" done first and then move onto "Wonder Woman"? How far are you into writing the movie?

Whedon: Oh, yeah. I’m deep into the script, but it’s unsure which will be first. It’s very possible that "Wonder Woman" will be first. When I finish the script for "Wonder Woman," I then will have a chance to sit in front of the two different producers and then see what I do first.

CS: So it’s basically your choice which you’ll do first.

Whedon: No, it’s really theirs, in a way. They really have to weigh in and tell me who goes first.

CS: And will you have any time to do any comic work in between? Whedon: Yeah, I’m going to be doing another year of "X-Men" and some "Buffy" comics and some more "Serenity" comics, so I’ll be busy.

CS: Do you think you might try to write some "Wonder Woman" comics as well?

Whedon: No, I don’t think so. First, I’ll start with the movie and let those chips fall where they may. I’ve taken on too much as it is.

CS: Do you have an actress in mind to play the Amazon warrior?

Whedon: No, I don’t.

CS: What about "Angel" and "Buffy"? Now that those shows are over, do you think you may try to bring those characters back for a movie or two down the road?

Whedon: Yeah, I think there are a lot of characters that I’d like to tell stories about, and I’m just getting that idea, and obviously, moving onto other things. At this point, it’s "Wonder Woman."

CS: My editor mentioned there may even be some "Buffy" spin-off DVDs. Is that something that might happen?

Whedon: Yeah, that’s possible. We might try to put that together, which would be some of the other characters like Spike getting a chance to shine on their own.

CS: And those would be full-length movies?

Whedon: Yeah, that’s the idea. The idea is very fluid right now. The idea is to have an idea.