In the past few weeks Joss Whedon has been doing a good deal of press for his latest project, a modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. However, since he is the writer/director of The Avengers, and the man who will be directing Avengers 2, he has also had to face a lot of questions regarding the future of the Marvel Universe.
Whedon described that he’s approaching the Avengers sequel in a more confident and different manner than he had with the original film. He even jokingly refers to it as his next passion project.
“I enter upon ‘Avengers 2′ with a different mindset than I did the first one. I feel like I know so well what it is that I want to accomplish, and like ‘Much Ado,’ I now have a real sense of the troop I’m working with and the strictures and the opportunities. My little passion, sidebar project comes out May 1st, 2015.”
Clark Gregg as Agent Phil Coulson
He also explained a little about the differences between doing a big budget Hollywood film of Marvel’s biggest superheroes in The Avengers, and bringing an unexplored area of the Marvel universe to life in the upcoming TV series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. In fact, Whedon said that the reason they brought Phil Coulson back from the dead was to show the human side of this same universe.
“There’s always the struggle between spectacle and a TV budget. What attracted me to ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ were the gadgets. But after the gadgets was humanity: The idea that there is an underside, a darker side, a more human context. Phil Coulson always represented the everyman, the schlemiel in the world of the fabulous or the mighty, gods and billionaires and legends. And that’s what the show is for, it’s for those people who, as remarkable as they may be, are not the supers, are not A-list.
“What are the rest of us worth when there are people that are so extraordinary? That’s a human story. We hired actors that I am so excited to welcome into our universe, and they’re extraordinary, and they’re going to bring so much to it. That’s what I’m giving people every week; those actors, their stories, and the stories that they encounter.”
That’s some very heady questions for a show that will exist in the same universe that the Hulk lives in. I’m very pleased to hear that Joss is focused on exploring this element, because too often the human side of these stories are ignored.
Rocket Raccoon
Joss also took the time to gush about how James Gunn is going a perfect choice to direct Guardians of the Galaxy.
“I’ve talked to them about the story from the beginning, and the different drafts. One of the questions they asked me was ‘What do you think of James Gunn?’ And I giggled like a school girl because I was like, ‘Oh, this movie is going to work.’
“My only piece of advice has been: I want to hear more of James. Let’s pull out the formula. Give me more James. Make it weirder. The only way to achieve that ‘Star Wars’ vibe is not to chase it – is to try to be an original universe and have all the fun and do all the stuff. And James is… he’s perfect for that because even I said, ‘A raccoon?’ And James’s thing was, ‘Here’s the deal. It’s about the raccoon. This is why I love it: because of the raccoon and the tree.’ And I’m like, ‘Okay, that’s the guy you need.”
Joss always manages to make a seasoned fan like me more interested in what’s to come, and these quotes are no exception. I do find it funny how he balked at the idea of including Rocket Raccoon. I would have thought that would be right up his alley.
What do you think about what Whedon has to say here? Are you more excited to see any of these upcoming projects? Why don’t you just tell us what you think in the comments below?
Source: Screen Rant