Former Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel star Charisma Carpenter is responding to claims from her former director Joss Whedon about his Justice Leauge movie cast. Whedon has recently opened up about his side of the “controversy” over Warner Bros. Justice League movie, and all the friction with the cast of that film – primarily Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot, and Cyborg actor Ray Fisher. Whedon’s claims have set off a new round of debate about who is telling the real story about DC’s superhero team-up film. Well, Charisma Carpenter is letting it be known exactly which side she’s on:
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“#IStandWithRayFisher The “malevolent force” and “bad actor in both senses” who poisoned my feeble mind with trendy buzzwords and corrupt ideas about my experiences with a former tyrannical narcissistic boss who is unable to be accountable and just apologize,” Carpenter posted on Twitter.
Her words come in reference to Ray Fisher, who was a Hollywood newcomer when Zack Snyder cast him in Justice League. Fisher would later claim that Whedon mistreated him and other actors of color on set after taking over directorial duties on the film from Snyder. Fisher posted his own response to Whedon, refusing to comment on the “buffoonery.”
“I believe Gal Gadot not only understands career threats in English but also in Hebrew and Arabic. Possibly French, Spanish, and Italian too,” Carpenter wrote in a Twitter post.
Gal Gadot has previously claimed that Whedon threatened her career when they butted heads over his changes to Wonder Woman’s character; according to Whedon, Gadot (an Israeli actress) didn’t quite understand English and his “flowery” way of using it. Gadot’s many fans have taken particular offense to that claim, arguing (like Carpenter) that Gal is quite proficient in a variety of languages.
There’s no way to be sure where the line of “real” runs through the muddled events of Justice Leauge’s creation – and the ultimate capitulating release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League on HBO Max. The cast of Justice League (which also included Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Jason Momoa, and Ezra Miller) signed up for the vision Snyder sold them on – the studio shuffle that put Whedon in the driver’s seat didn’t seem to sit well with anyone involved. Whedon’s Justice League controversy spread throughout the rest of his career, with Charisma Carpenter and other actresses from the Buffy era echoing similar ill-feelings about working with Whedon.
This latest interview from Whedon hasn’t done him many favors swaying opinion; swipes at Gal Gadot’s English comprehension, Ray Fisher’s acting – or the noted claim that Whedon called the Justice League cast the rudest bunch he ever worked with – arguably make him sound like the man the Justice League cast criticized in the first place.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is streaming on HBO Max.
