Joss Whedon Allegations: The Undoing of the "Buffy" Creator

[Parmandur]

Hey, for some reason Mel Gibson is getting work again, and I have no honest idea why. It's not like he reformed or apologized. So who knows what will happen with Joss.

Bit of a difference there: Gibson is mentally ill and has substance abuse issues, and he has recurring apologies when he's back on the wagon. And when he is on the wagon, he can apparently be very pleasant to work with.

Whedon is far worse than that, he is a stable jerk.

 

[Dire Bare]

It just seems short-sighted (and unnecessarily cruel) to boycott Angel and hand Charisma Carpenter the same punishment we're handing Joss Whedon because "that's the business."

Not that I have a better idea in mind. Just food for thought, I guess.

Personally, I don't boycott much . . . as to your point, you often punish a lot more folks than the ones you're angry at. And I generally don't think they are all that effective anyway unless a lot of people are on board.

But I'm fine with folks who do, whether it's a hard boycott intended to punish the evil doer ("I want to make Joss Whedon pay!") or a soft boycott ("I just can't watch and enjoy Buffy anymore."). But this isn't a lot of people, and their decisions to boycott aren't seriously affecting anyone's bottom line, Whedon's or Carpenter's.

Charisma (as a representative of other creatives affected by any boycott) might lose out on some royalties, but . . . that's the business . . . and she's not wise if she's relying on those royalties to pay the bills. And Charisma's a smart girl, she's doing fine, even if not as visibly when she was one of the stars of a hit TV show. She's got some good interviews out there, I like the relatively recent one with Michael Rosenbaum on his podcast.

 

[CleverNickName]

Hey, for some reason Mel Gibson is getting work again, and I have no honest idea why. It's not like he reformed or apologized. So who knows what will happen with Joss.

Kevin Spacy, too. Apparently in May 2021 it was announced that he would be starring in a film called The Man Who Drew God, which is about a blind artist who is wrongly accused of sexually abusing a child. And in August of 2021, he was filming in California for a film called Peter Five Eight.

The multiple sexual assault allegations against him were made in October 2017. Not even 4 years had passed.

 

[Zardnaar]

Yeah, I figured. But what does a typical contract like this usually contain? What could we expect someone like Joss Whedon to be contracted for, regarding a show like Buffy the Vampire Slayer...a show that has been long-completed, but is still available for purchase/syndication/streaming? How much money would Joss receive each time an episode of Buffy is streamed? Or would he receive a cut from Warner Brothers when/if Hulu or Netflix purchases the permissions to stream Buffy? And if so, how much? Do other actors have similar contracts as well?

The contracts I'm accustomed to seeing are all on a per-show or a per-run basis (limited theater background). I've never had to deal with anything like syndication or royalties.

Generally you pay for the rights regardless if you screen it or not.

Buffy is in Disney+ here specifically star. I think the streaming companies generally pay for the rights of a show and residuals may or may not apply on older contracts.

But ufa show got "cancelled" the streaming service would eat the loss afaik as they've already paid for the rights to stream said show.

Residuals often aren't as much as you think unless you're the major star/creative/producer type.

Hollywood had issues for decades eg the casting couch.

 

[Zardnaar]

I mean, how many people in Hollywood knew about Harvey Weinstein before his reckoning came? Also, people are still willingly and happily working with people like Roman Polanksi and Woody Allen, and as bad as Whedon has been, he's at least not a freakin' sex criminal*. I have my doubts Whedon will be gone for long. I'd be shocked if the ousting sticks. Pleasantly surprised, but shocked nonetheless.

*that we're aware of, in any case

If I was a betting man (I'm not) I wouldn't bet against this.

Joss will pop up again in a few years. Hell get work may not be as high profile as before idk. "There's no such thing as bad publicly" saying exists for a reason.

 

[Ryujin]

Generally you pay for the rights regardless if you screen it or not.

Buffy is in Disney+ here specifically star. I think the streaming companies generally pay for the rights of a show and residuals may or may not apply on older contracts.

But ufa show got "cancelled" the streaming service would eat the loss afaik as they've already paid for the rights to stream said show.

Residuals often aren't as much as you think unless you're the major star/creative/producer type.

Hollywood had issues for decades eg the casting couch.

A local talk radio host, John Moore, has said a few times that he knows when someone is airing "The Day After Tomorrow" because he gets a cheque for something like $0.50, for his portrayal of "TV News Caster."

 

[Zardnaar]

A local talk radio host, John Moore, has said a few times that he knows when someone is airing "The Day After Tomorrow" because he gets a cheque for something like $0.50, for his portrayal of "TV News Caster."

Yep I've seen things like 87 cents cheques being sent out.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Gotta say, it’s a good thing I’ve cultivated an ability to detach creatives’ output from their personal lives. (Ditto others in the public eye.) I was largely unaware of the scandalous & evil acts perpetrated by several people mentioned in here. I generally don’t seek out such info unless and until it is unavoidable news.

“Feet of clay…”, never meet your idols* and all that.

I make no claims of consistency in my reactions to such revelations, either. Sometimes, I simply stop engaging with their creations, sometimes I don’t. But I don’t simply forgive & forget, either. I might not boycott, but I might also deprioritize buying/viewing/reading etc. their future work for so long as to make no difference.




* Better, don’t idolize your fellow humans.

 

[Zardnaar]

Gotta say, it’s a good thing I’ve cultivated an ability to detach creatives’ output from their personal lives. (Ditto others in the public eye.) I was largely unaware of the scandalous & evil acts perpetrated by several people mentioned in here. I generally don’t seek out such info unless and until it is unavoidable news.

“Feet of clay…”, never meet your idols* and all that.

I make no claims of consistency in my reactions to such revelations, either. Sometimes, I simply stop engaging with their creations, sometimes I don’t. But I don’t simply forgive & forget, either. I might not boycott, but I might also deprioritize buying/viewing/reading etc. their future work for so long as to make no difference.




* Better, don’t idolize your fellow humans.

Pretty much what I do. Might stop giving them money but not gonna destroy existing material I own/consume.

I don't generally idolize anyone though or have a favorite band/author/director etc.

 

[Mad_Jack]

Usually, if somebody's made it onto society's crap list but I still want to watch their work I buy a physical copy of it second-hand - I'll find a used copy online or in a bargain bin somewhere. Nobody involved with the project is still making any money on that particular copy of it.