Joss Whedon on 'Much Ado About Nothing' - Much Ado About Nothing

Interesting interview. The comment about Amy being" the best actress he's ever worked with" is kind of startling, though. Not that I don't love Amy, just that we all know Joss has his ragtag bunch of favorites, but I'm not sure I can recall ever hearing him singling individuals out like that as "the best" before. Strange.

grrarg | September 04, 16:21 CET

That's slightly concerning that he cannot make movies or TV outside his deal with Marvel. I was aware that he could not make anything for another studio. But I had assumed that any movies Bellwether Productions produced could find a distributor and be played in cinemas. Does this mean, for example, that In Your Eyes cannot be played in cinemas and would need to be released onto the web?

Let Down | September 04, 16:28 CET

PLEASE find a distributor for this movie! I need it in my life. At least give me a trailer. That can hold me over for a little while.

mossome | September 04, 16:29 CET

asgardian, my eyes bugged out even more so at how out of place Joss' statement about Sarah not doing the Shakespere readings seemed. It's common knowledge around these parts (and possibly the subject of endless mudslinging), but it seems a weird thing to be in this piece unless it was a followup to a question that wasn't transcribed...

The whole cast in Toronto? As if I don't have enough reasons to wish I were at TIFF... (used to live there)

counti8 | September 04, 16:36 CET

Let Down, he specifically says the deal carved room for Much Ado and In Your Eyes. But beyond that...

@theonetruebix | September 04, 16:46 CET

counti8, I thought that was very strange as well. It seemed so out of place and strangely... mean-spirited? I wonder if that was transcribed correctly.

Oh how I wish I could go to Toronto. :(

Giles_314 | September 04, 16:50 CET

Joss may have added in the SMG sentence to preemptively cut off the question, "Did Gellar participate in the Buffy Shakespeare readings?" Given that he specified that it was primarily Buffy folks involved, it seems like a natural follow up question.

archon | September 04, 17:08 CET

I thought they mentioned that SMG didn't do them just as a demonstration of the timing, that he started doing them way late in Buffy's run. I didn't think it was meant to be mean spirited.
Also, super cool that the cast will be at the showing & I hope the movie does get distributed.

NYPinTA | September 04, 17:12 CET

Maybe he's hyperbolic in his praise of Amy? The SMG comment also seemed out of place to me, but it seems likely it's the result of the editing out of a question. Even discounting the mean-spiritedness, it doesn't really flow as a paragraph.

Like With Pie | September 04, 17:41 CET

Strange as it may seem, I would really cherish a Joss-Whedon-created macrame piece. Though not more than I would tickets to see Much Ado at TIFF.

Has there been any word on other festivals the film might be going to?

Famin | September 04, 18:39 CET

The SMG reference was very oddly worded. Did not flow at all like Joss' normal speaking style. I read it as some rather clumsy editing on behalf of the writer.

Joss has 'singled' out particular casts before - he's on record as calling the the Firefly crew his best cast - but a single actor/actress is new to me, too.

But I do think Amy and Sarah are the two best actresses in the Joss shows. Best actor is harder for me. Probably Alexis, closely followed by James Marsters. Struggle not to include Tony Head in there as well.

EffulGentleman | September 04, 20:30 CET

Hi.

The comment about Sarah was out of context and in response to a question.

The comment about Amy was true.

I have had (and hope to keep and grow) the most astonishing stable of thesps, male and female, a director could wish for. I love them all, and know that all of them have qualities and strengths that no one else has. "Best" doesn't mean best at everything, or right for every part. I don't believe in setting my people apart, or making any of them to feel small. Was Sarah the best possible Buffy? Only totes. I still watch her work like a fannish man-boy. I could write essays and sonnets about all of my actors -- Alexis would get a Rogers & Hammerstein "Soliloquy" type song -- but you all know how I feel about them by how I filmed them, how I wrote for them. Let's not quibble.

Having said that, see above.

Best, -j.

joss | September 04, 20:36 CET

I LOVE YOU JOSS!!!

And am SO glad you cleared that up. I love all of your casting choices!!! :D

With that said, I love the comparison between Shakespeare and Avengers. The "Shakespeare in the Park" scene was written beautifully!

FangedFourLover | September 04, 20:43 CET

Well, that settles that!

Wasn't expecting a comment from Your Purpleness. But what would bring you out more quickly than defense of your crew?

And I have a similar problem with BtVS episodes: best? How on earth could I judge?

ManEnoughToAdmitIt | September 04, 20:46 CET

Cannot wait to see "Much Ado." I hope those distributers get to work quickly!

Unsurprised by Amy comment. She has facets upon facets.

Putting all of the answers in a paragraph with one set of quotes = not cool.

Am waiting in breathless anticipation for the new macrame project.

jcs | September 04, 21:16 CET

Surprise Joss post right before I go to sleep. Wow. That Whedon fella sure has a way with words. He'd make a great writer.

The ew editor flubbed the gross for TA. Not.surprised they flubbed the interiew too.

[ edited by eddy on 2012-09-05 06:26 ]

eddy | September 04, 21:23 CET

All of your actors are equal, it's just that Amy is MORE equal than the others, got it. Also, everyone should check her out on Person of Interest.

archon | September 04, 22:06 CET

It makes sense that the SMG bit would be in response to a question - Joss isn't the type to publicly smear his actors. That being said, I am not even the slightest bit surprised that Sarah didn't do the readings. I love her as Buffy, she is a brilliantly talented actress and performs the hell out of that role, but I never got the sense that she was really involved with this community any more than she absolutely had to be. That may be just my opinion, but there it is.

WhatsAStevedore | September 04, 22:07 CET

I saw Amy in Sironia (a little indie that's mostly played the festival circuit so far) and she was as amazing as always. After seeing it, I ended up talking with my fellow viewers about how great she was as Fred and Illyria, and how heartbreaking she was when Fred died. I can't wait to see Amy in Much Ado!

ShadowKatie | September 04, 22:11 CET

Goodness! A purple comment! Glad that was cleared up, it did sound out of place and weird and makes much more sense as a response to another question.

My worry is: does this happen a lot in interviews? I'm not a journalist and I don't know, but it seems to me like this would be considered poor practice. Editing in this way can really change how someone comes across. Just my two cents.

As for Amy: Yes. I love her. More, please.

Giles_314 | September 04, 22:35 CET

I read Joss' comment before I read the article, so I didn't have to wonder... although like a heartening many of you, I would've assumed the quote had been fiddled with or mis-placed, too. So very unJossian... I'm glad he clarified, anyway, and I'd have expected no less.

Joss: "Shakespeare was shameless about that stuff, pop culture references."

This Shakespeare & pop culture thing has reared its head here before. ; ]

I, too, long to see some Joss-made macramé. (And that reminded of that wonderful interview that Joss did with Kim Werker in which we learned that Joss has both knit and crocheted, and of his longtime love of all things craftular.)

So, it could happen. As with much in my life, I'm going to pretend that it will happen.

QuoterGal | September 04, 23:02 CET

Well said, Joss.

But really though. Amy Acker is the best.

All joking aside, it's good that Amy is getting such high praise from this film because hopefully this film gives her the credibility and visibility in this industry that she deserves. She is just so criminally underrated outside of the Whedonverse.

And yes, Sarah's performance as Buffy is just... There are no words how incredible it is.

lisatwingomez | September 04, 23:05 CET

Yikes, that writer went to town on the fiddling of that article; good job we've got this Joss guy to clear stuff up. Can't wait for when this gets a distributor and we can all bask in its sure-fire amazingness!

Dude Meister | September 04, 23:12 CET

Reading between the lines, joss is saying I'm the best actress he's ever worked with.

Btdubs, that Amy/Fran scene in Dollhouse 201 is not only the best (yes, I used that word) scene to come out of Dollhouse, I still think it's the best single scene joss ever did. Which is to say, Amy is a rad actress. And yes, I just said rad. (And yes, Dollhouse had many rad actors and actresses).

gossi | September 05, 01:09 CET

Funny. I actually thought the Sarah comment was the writer adding some info, until I realized it was still within the quotes.

Then I went, "Huh? Joss doth speaketh with the strange, but this is some new man-person I am not familiar with."

Glad he clarified it.

digitlnoize | September 05, 01:58 CET

Glad the boss stepped in to clarify, that was some dodgy editing right there! The Dollhouse Amy/Fran scene still haunts me with its creepy creepy beautifulness.

Sessess | September 05, 02:06 CET

gossi, I agree on the Dollhouse 201 scene. It amazed me at the time, and when I look back at the full 2-season set all these years later it's still the one scene that sticks in my mind. (I also liked Topher's line "Huh...!" immediately before the final episode's climax, like he had an important realization of something we'll never know.)

I hope that Much Ado gains Amy the broader attention she deserves for her great acting skills. She must be thrilled today to hear Joss's public praise of her!

SteveP | September 05, 02:07 CET

I look forward to Joss Whedon macramé.

the ninja report | September 05, 02:49 CET

...In Your Eyes, which my wife produced, which we’ve finished post on.

I've been wondering what you've been up to, In Your Eyes. :)

Joss impresses again by being a courteous gentleman (the kind who won't rip your still-beating heart from your chest) (literally) and clarifying the SMG quote smooshage.

Shine on, Amy Acker, you star-shaped diamond.

Pointy | September 05, 04:06 CET

The SMG bit was so awkwardly put that I think it was clear to most of us that it was out of context. But how nice to have our assumptions confirmed!

And I was very happy to see that the whole cast was coming- I'm one of the fortunate ones who will be in the audience Saturday afternoon.

Lioness | September 05, 04:21 CET

that Amy/Fran scene in Dollhouse 201 is not only the best... scene to come out of Dollhouse, I still think it's the best single scene joss ever did

gossi | September 05, 10:09 CET

Completely agree it's the best scene in Dollhouse. Anyone unsure about Amy's chops need only watch that scene. She's simply stunning. Illyria is what sold me on her as someone I'll follow for the rest of her career, but her performance in that scene on Dollhouse elevated her to one of my favorite actresses ever. That is one talented woman.

Now, for best single scene Joss ever did? That's a much tougher call. I'd need to make a list of the best to choose from, narrow it down to ten, and then I could pick one. But what kind of fan does something like that? ;)

guidedby | September 05, 07:13 CET

People, people, where are your priorities? He said macramé!

But all kidding aside, I hope EW corrects the botched quote.

I get that it's the nature of fandom to rank everything including "best" actors, but I've never liked making lists. Actors can only work with the material given to them and not everyone gets the same opportunities to shine. Every meat puppet will have its own . . . okay, I better stop because this is going very wrong.

punkinpuss | September 05, 07:50 CET

What does "only totes" mean? Totally?

lottalettuce | September 05, 08:04 CET

Wow! Back to school craziness made me late to this thread. A purple post is such a joy even if it's to address a botched editting job. Anyone get on ew about this? I swear folks there watch this site or follow twitter feed at least.

For the sake of argument and cause I'm in a troublemaking mood, I think that while all Whedon actors are equal, Head and Hiddleston are in the more column in my books. Anyone ever see Hiddleston do Shakespeare....sigh?

But I love them all, I do, really.

hann23 | September 05, 08:38 CET

Giles314, having some knowledge of how interviews are put together, I can say that, especially when there is a tight word count and the journalist thinks the quotes flow together, a question may be removed and answers edited together into one paragraph. I suspect the writer of the piece thought the SMG matter was just adding clarification (it was during the "Buffy" years, so did the actress playing "Buffy" participate?), not creating controversy or implying anything negative. It's even possible that the question was included and was taken out for space reasons by the editor, who similarly did not think there was a negative connotation. And no, I don't know the interviewer or the editor.

lottalettuce, Joss Whedon appears in and is a fan of "Husbands The Series." "Totes" is used in that show to mean "totally."

Shapenew | September 05, 08:43 CET

Well it wouldn't be the first time that Joss has posted at Whedonesque to clarify an EW.com interview.

http://whedonesque.com/comments/9027#101124

Simon | September 05, 08:54 CET

Totes has totes been around for a while. Totesome!

gossi | September 05, 09:12 CET

Yeahs, "totes" is for sure an earlier thing. Totes McGoats.

QuoterGal | September 05, 09:18 CET

A purple post always makes me happy (for one thing it means that Joss has enough time to waste reading Whedonesque!). I never imagined that Joss meant any insult to Sarah or anyone else when he praised Amy Acker. I love the casting of his shows over the years, and it makes me really happy that he is able to something so amazing as making 'Much Ado About Nothing' in his own yard with his friends (it kills me that I cannot get to Toronto to see it's premier!).

embers | September 05, 09:57 CET

I get the feeling even Dawn said it once.

Jaymii | September 05, 10:03 CET

Amy's acting chops: Fred + Illyria. Now THAT'S what I call range.

WhatsAStevedore | September 05, 11:04 CET

Hooray for clarification! And I cannot wait for Much Ado About Nothing. I feel like this is a bit like "Hush," where we'll get to see how much Joss can do without writing a word. (Yes, that's shameless flattery. But it's still true.)

Like With Pie | September 05, 11:51 CET

WhatsAStevedore I agree, Amy was good as Fred and Dr. Saunders, But when she became Illyria, you could see just what a great actress she is. I always get chill bumps when she goes from Fred to Illyria in "the Girl In Quastion", espacially when she is Illyria but without the Illyria makeup.

urkonn | September 05, 12:18 CET

I think Joss Whedon said he got the idea for Illyria from seeing Amy Acker play Regan in "King Lear" at one of the readings - could be wrong on the character, but know it was a Shakespearean royal.

Shapenew | September 05, 15:08 CET

Amy Acker complimenting aside (but yes, the Topher scene was so utterly brilliant) - I must admit that what I really got out of this is that 1) Joss has never been to Toronto and 2) the whole cast is going to be at TIFF?! I'm a bad person for being so happy about this when so many of you can't be there but I am so, so, so excited for Saturday...

[ edited by prettymaryk on 2012-09-06 02:22 ]

prettymaryk | September 05, 17:22 CET

September 04 2012