Fantasy Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel the Vampire - Part 3

[batdude]

Michelle Trachtenberg Says Joss Whedon Wasn’t Allowed To Be Alone With Her On Buffy Set

So, Trachtenberg had one more bit to add to her statement, which she says will be the last. There was a rule that Joss was not allowed to be alone with her. Which... can only be for career endingly bad reasons.

Man what a bomb to drop. This is Worse than I thought.

 

[kvz5]

Michelle Trachtenberg Says Joss Whedon Wasn’t Allowed To Be Alone With Her On Buffy Set

So, Trachtenberg had one more bit to add to her statement, which she says will be the last. There was a rule that Joss was not allowed to be alone with her. Which... can only be for career endingly bad reasons.

Yeah... The fact that the rule was made means that not only did people know but it was also escalated. It can’t be anything light and that’s sickening.

 

[SiegePerilous]

Eliza Dushku is throwing in her support of Charisma

 

[Doctor Jones]

Was it sexual? Or because he was emotionally abusive he wasn't allowed alone with her because she was a minor and the worry was how he would treat her? Either way... Whedon is worse than I thought and that was after the infidelity claim. This whole thing just creates a whole worse context for everything. When that crosses into your professional life and preying on your young female cast. The weird thing is it's so in character for him. The abuse is so pretty but manipulative. When the face of your creation says what she said, it really drives the point home.

Looking back on that 20th anniversary EW special, Whedon wasn't in the room with the rest of the cast. He was interviewed alone. Makes a lot of sense in hindsight.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Eliza Dushku is throwing in her support of Charisma

I just had flashback to her whole situation on Bull. It really is everywhere, isn't it?

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Was it sexual? Or because he was emotionally abusive he wasn't allowed alone with her because she was a minor and the worry was how he would treat her? Either way... Whedon is worse than I thought and that was after the infidelity claim. This whole thing just creates a whole worse context for everything. When that crosses into your professional life and preying on your young female cast. The weird thing is it's so in character for him. The abuse is so pretty but manipulative. When the face of your creation says what she said, it really drives the point home.

Looking back on that 20th anniversary EW special, Whedon wasn't in the room with the rest of the cast. He was interviewed alone. Makes a lot of sense in hindsight.

I am not sure if it has been clarified, but as Trachtenberg had already mentioned whatever happened was way out of her age range, I think we all probably know what it means.

 

[SiegePerilous]

Honestly at this point, on the slim chance we get a reunion series or something...just bring back everyone except Whedon. He may have been the main reason nobody wanted to come back!

Bring back the best writers from both shows and put Tim Minear or Jane Espenson in charge or something, we won't even miss him

 

[Snow Queen]

Michelle Trachtenberg Says Joss Whedon Wasn’t Allowed To Be Alone With Her On Buffy Set

So, Trachtenberg had one more bit to add to her statement, which she says will be the last. There was a rule that Joss was not allowed to be alone with her. Which... can only be for career endingly bad reasons.

Her statement yesterday about how she was exposed to stuff inappropriate for a teenager was... really worrying. This is... yeah.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Honestly at this point, on the slim chance we get a reunion series or something...just bring back everyone except Whedon. He may have been the main reason nobody wanted to come back!

Bring back the best writers from both shows and put Tim Minear or Jane Espenson in charge or something, we won't even miss him

We just learned that there was rule specifically about not leaving Trachtenberg on her own with Whedon. That means the majority knew. What are the chances Minear and Espenson didn't know?

 

[Detective Conan]

 

[Shinobi Shaw]

Honestly at this point, on the slim chance we get a reunion series or something...just bring back everyone except Whedon. He may have been the main reason nobody wanted to come back!

Bring back the best writers from both shows and put Tim Minear or Jane Espenson in charge or something, we won't even miss him

Speaking of the writers, another person I would love to hear from is Marti Noxon. I mean come Season 6, she pretty much took up the reins for the show while Joss was doing Firefly. I'm sure whatever terror he was bringing wasn't just exclusive to the cast, I wonder how their relationship really was.

 

[Dr.]

Tony Head commenting on it

Buffy star "gutted" after Whedon toxic behaviour claims

Of course, Head is supportive of his former castmates. But it seems he wasn’t witness to “abuse” or “toxicity.”

Dushku’s statement was, likewise, noncommittal with respect to firsthand knowledge.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

So I wanted to see more fans talking about this, so I decided to check out the Buffy Reddit, an the mods are clearly trying to control the narrative on this story, and it's extremely gross. On the plus side, the posters there all seem pretty outraged about it.

 

[Teelie]

I just had flashback to her whole situation on Bull. It really is everywhere, isn't it?

Has been from the beginning which is why it is so hard to root out. Hollywood has a very permissive culture of letting the powerful on sets get away with anything.

 

[henzINNIT]

Michelle Trachtenberg breaking my heart.

Has been from the beginning which is why it is so hard to root out. Hollywood has a very permissive culture of letting the powerful on sets get away with anything.

As horrendous as it is to hear about the toxic environment, the real sinking dread I have is that it went unchecked and damn-near unreported for 20 years. And, to be frank, even at the level of a cult TV show. Whedon was not someone I would have previously credited with having much power. He had his shows of course but was a blip on the radar of Hollywood. He was king of his little eco-system though. This culture needs to change cause the silence helps only the wrong-doers.

Looking back on that 20th anniversary EW special, Whedon wasn't in the room with the rest of the cast. He was interviewed alone. Makes a lot of sense in hindsight.

Not quite so. He had his photos with Nick Brendon. I remember cause I naturally assumed Brendon's name must be muck with everyone else, of course I didn't really think of the significance of Whedon being with him.

 

[eddy]

We just learned that there was rule specifically about not leaving Trachtenberg on her own with Whedon. That means the majority knew. What are the chances Minear and Espenson didn't know?

Tim Minear didn’t work on Buffy. But he did work on every other Joss show except for AOS.

 

[Mani-Man]

I just had flashback to her whole situation on Bull. It really is everywhere, isn't it?

Yeah, seems that way.
She had to deal with **** during True Lies and recently Bull...really sad.

I am not sure if it has been clarified, but as Trachtenberg had already mentioned whatever happened was way out of her age range, I think we all probably know what it means.

While we cant say for sure unless she says more, if Whedon wasnt allowed to be alone with her, we can take a good guess why.
Its heartbreaking.

Honestly at this point, on the slim chance we get a reunion series or something...just bring back everyone except Whedon. He may have been the main reason nobody wanted to come back!

Bring back the best writers from both shows and put Tim Minear or Jane Espenson in charge or something, we won't even miss him

He doesnt own the rights anymore does he? Would be easy to do stuff without him.

 

[Primal Slayer]

Fox owned the rights to everything Buffy. Disney now is in charge. Anything they do, he will get paid for though.

 

[henzINNIT]

Of course, Head is supportive of his former castmates. But it seems he wasn’t witness to “abuse” or “toxicity.”

Dushku’s statement was, likewise, noncommittal with respect to firsthand knowledge.

What do you want him to say? We're dealing with an incredibly complex situation involving many long time friends and we have no idea what the details are or what Head or anyone personally witnessed or knew of.

It is unlikely that Whedon was just a total maniac that everyone hated and covered for. It is far more likely that he was volatile but overall liked and trusted by many. Charisma spoke of isolation and awful private conversations. It sounds like these ladies perhaps have only recently come to terms with some of the damage done, so it's easy to imagine an environment where their suffering could go unnoticed.

Similarly I can picture how Whedon would be popular in the writers' room. A lot of writers have said they loved working on Buffy and are very proud of it, and they have often been the most complimentary about Whedon himself. This could all be hollywood lies of course and we'll see what surfaces in future, but I can see how Whedon would be perceived in that bubble where it's all ideas and stories and jokes. On set, where you're working nights, wrangling actors and stuntmen and chipping your ideas down into the constraints of weekly TV series; that's where a person is tested and their worst is revealed.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Wasn't it said Whedon had favorites? I can't imagine Head would fit into Whedon's M.O. He's an older male with standing than young female newcomers who Whedon can easily take more advantage of and exert power over, so I can't imagine how Head would be a witness to that. Judging by his abuse, it wasn't in the open, Scott Rudin abusive, it was more petty person to person where Whedon could just sit you down in a room and do it that way more passively even. You may not even know he's doing it. It's more manipulative.

It always comes down to power. It's intoxicating, especially in this industry. Especially when you are in charge of attractive young women and they are in your story. My friend said it best, power reveals. It's more of an ownership thing. His female casting and their intentions is coming off as more fetishistic in hindsight. Granted, great actors in their own right with terrific acting where I can still enjoy their characters for what they are, even the stories, but from now on, I'll have to take a beat and wonder what other subtext there might have been from its creator.

 

[henzINNIT]

I wonder if we'll hear any kind of response from Joss Whedon himself over this. Probably not I expect, but if he believed the values he preached then he has some things to confess.

Wasn't it said Whedon had favorites? I can't imagine Head would fit into Whedon's M.O. He's an older male with standing than young female newcomers who Whedon can easily take more advantage of and exert power over, so I can't imagine how Head would be a witness to that. Judging by his abuse, it wasn't in the open, Scott Rudin abusive, it was more petty person to person where Whedon could just sit you down in a room and do it that way more passively even.

It always comes down to power. It's intoxicating, especially in this industry. Especially when you are in charge of attractive young women and they are in your story. My friend said it best, power reveals. It's more of an ownership thing. His female casting and their intentions is coming off as more fetishistic in hindsight. Granted, great actors in their own right with terrific acting where I can still enjoy their characters for what they are, even the stories, but from now on, I'll have to take a beat and wonder what other subtext there might have been from its creator.

I think hanging out with Whedon meant music and Shakespeare readings. Whedon wrote Giles singing in to the show several times and had plans for that Ripper spin off. Safe bet that Head was someone Whedon valued and respected.

 

[henzINNIT]

 

[Havok83]

It’s good to see the cast finally coming out in full force, though. I don’t recall them backing up Charisma like this before.

Im disappointed in them bc the stuff Charisma has said isnt new. They all were mostly cowardly and did not support her so this feels a bit hollow

 

[Sithborg]

There were new details that I hadn't seen before.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Im disappointed in them bc the stuff Charisma has said isnt new. They all were mostly cowardly and did not support her so this feels a bit hollow

It's crazy to think that Fisher, who barely got any support, got a lot more then Carpenter did for years. That said, considering the reactions I saw to Fisher and even Carpenter and Trachtenberg this time around, it's hard for me to call all these people cowards. Many were probably truly ignorant. Others feared what would happen considering the power dynamics we know play out.