Joss Whedon

In this exclusive interview with Joss Whedon he discusses the end of season 8 of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic, as well as the horror film he produced, The Cabin in the Woods, and a very brief mention of The Avengers. MEDIA GEEK: Since Buffy Season 8 is coming to a close and there will be a hiatus between Season 8 and 9, I wonder if you were able to evolve the Buffy story further.

JOSS WHEDON: It has, but it’s also been a question of planning our footing in terms of what do people expect from a comic book that’s a licensed product. You know, how much of it has to be comic book, how much of it needs to be the show? It’s been a crazy journey, and we’re going to have a new paradigm for season nine, and I think that’s going to be the case for all seasons – the same as it was on the show. Right now I’m trying desperately to get some work out so Scott Allie [at Dark Horse] doesn’t have an aneurysm.

MEDIA GEEK: Is your heart still into the comic?

JOSS WHEDON: I love crafting it and getting it where it’s going, and when I have time I love writing issues. But it’s a little tough right now, and Dark Horse is taking it on the chin a little bit; I’m struggling so much, because I have this other little thing [The Avengers].

MEDIA GEEK: You’ve produced the horror film Cabin in the Woods, the release date of which is on hold because of the MGM bankruptcy situation. How frustrating is that?

JOSS WHEDON: Well, we’ll see how it all pans out, but it’s not exactly champagne. I’m actually really cranky about James Bond – I’m like, “You’ve got a good one, keep going…”

MEDIA GEEK: What’s the power of Cabin in the Woods?

JOSS WHEDON: It’s an old fashioned horror movie, it does involve young people going out into a cabin in the woods, which is never a good idea, but it’s also me and Drew Goddard sitting around with our thoughts about why we love these movies, and what’s weird about them and what’s awesome, and I think it’s very original. I would like for America to see it, or even a small portion of America, but we’ll see if they get to keep their release date when we see who owns them. It was supposed to be in January.

MEDIA GEEK: Bearing The Avengers in mind, I guess asking if you have anything in the hopper…

JOSS WHEDON: The hopper is on hold.

MEDIA GEEK: Is it thrilling to put yourself into this one project?

JOSS WHEDON: It is, it’s nice. It took a lot of weight off my shoulders, because one thing about self-producing is, A, it’s not particularly lucrative, and B you know, you carry all this stuff, and you’re trying to think about, what should I be concentrating on? In the case of something like Dr. Horrible, it’s musicals, so I’m wondering what muscle am I supposed to be flexing right now? But the moment I got the Avengers, a great deal of that fell away. I know exactly what I have to do every time I wake up, and for a little while, that’s a nice thing.