Someone may have to finally revoke Joss Whedon’s male feminist card. Recent allegations paint an even worse picture of the filmmaker behind Avengers and hit TV show Buffy The Vampire Slayer than ever. And it couldn’t have happened to a worse guy.
On February 10, actress Charisma Carpenter took to Twitter to release an in-depth statement on her abuse allegations against Whedon. While it has already been alleged that he previously fired the actress from her role on Buffy and Angel after she became pregnant, Carpenter provided more details on what she refers to as his “casually cruel” behavior:
Like his on-going passive-aggressive threats to fire me, which wreaks havoc on a young actor’s self-esteem. And callously calling me “fat” to colleagues when I was 4 months pregnant, weighing 126 lbs. He was mean and biting, disparaging others openly, and often played favorites, pitting people against one another to compete and vie for his attention and approval.
The behavior grew worse as she finally describes Whedon’s reaction upon learning she was pregnant (after refusing multiple attempts to contact him):
He asked me if I was going to ‘keep it’ and manipulatively weaponized my womanhood and faith against me. He proceeded to attack my character, mock my religious beliefs, accuse me of sabotaging the show, and then unceremoniously fired me the following season once I gave birth…Unfortunately, all this was happening during one of the most wonderful time[s] in new motherhood. All that promise and joy sucked right out. And Joss was the vampire.”
This was apparently the man awarded by Equality Now for his work in female equality. Later, fellow Buffy actor Amber Benson came in support of Carpenter’s statement. She tweeted:
“Buffy was a toxic environment and it starts at the top. @AllCharismais speaking truth and I support her 100%. There was a lot of damage done during that time and many of us are still processing it twenty plus years later.”
Carpenter recently also came out in support of actor Ray Fisher’s abuse allegations against Joss Whedon following the Justice League reshoots helmed by Whedon. In response, WarnerMedia conducted an investigation in to the reshoots, leading Whedon to step down from his HBOMax series The Nevers. They have yet to comment on Carpenter’s recent statements.
While stories of Whedon's abuses are not new considering his years of unhinged behavior, it seems like the media is finally allowing his star to fade. However, since this comes after years of promoting him for his “feminist” views, Hollywood may have to reckon with more than a few actors’ complaints. And there’s surely more to come after this.
