Moviefone Editorial

Tag: joss-whedon

  • What Makes ‘Wonder Woman’ Our Most Essential Superhero Movie

    The history of Wonder Woman is, to say the least, fraught. The creation of William Moulton Marston, a psychiatrist and charlatan who claims to have invented the lie detector test and had more than a passing interest in what we’d now call BDSM culture, Wonder Woman was a character of contradictions, preaching love and practicing violence, who was born out of a smoky cauldron of suffragette imagery, proto-feminist ideals and pop psychology.

    After debuting shortly before America’s entrance into World War II, she became one of the most popular comic book figures in the world, and her popularity only waned after Marston died. Her resurgence coincided with the women’s liberation movement in the ’60s and ’70s (aided in part by a cheesy TV series that ran at the tail end of the ’70s), and today stands as an icon for female empowerment as much as she does a princess from a mythical island who clashes with contemporary society.

    And her journey to the big screen has been equally imperiled, with development of a “Wonder Woman” film dating back to at least the mid-’90s. The closest she ever got to the big screen happened in 2005, when Joss Whedon was hired to write and direct an adaptation for super producer Joel Silver. Whedon’s sensibilities seemed perfectly aligned for the property but it ultimately fizzled out. It wasn’t until the DC Extended Universe, the interconnected series of films that began with “Man of Steel” in 2013, that Wonder Woman finally had her shot at cinematic stardom. Following a brief appearance in “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice,” where she stole the movie from both Batman and Superman, the character is finally getting her own movie in “Wonder Woman,” out this Friday.

    And forget about any other superheroes at the multiplexes this summer — “Wonder Woman” is the most essential superhero movie right now (for good reason, too).

    “Wonder Woman” is, more than anything else, a typical superhero origin story. Even though she was introduced in the modern-day-set “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” (as is the backwards way DC handles its heroes), her story begins long ago, and the only tangential connection to the rest of the extended universe is her reminiscing about the photo she was so keen in retrieving in “Batman v. Superman”: a black-and-white portrait of our fair Diana Prince (Gal Gadot, in a peerless performance), with some fellow soldiers (including Chris Pine‘s Steve Trevor), way back in World War I.

    So we flash back first to Themyscira (aka Paradise Island, an idea cribbed from early suffragette literature) and then to her heroics in World War I. This is a straight-up period superhero movie, but unlike most origin stories she doesn’t have to learn how to deal with her powers; her fighting abilities don’t increase and she is never helpless. Instead, it’s more about her figuring out her place in the world and how she can help those who would otherwise be unable to help themselves. One of the greatest sequences in the movie sees her crawling out of a trench and walking across a contentious “No Man’s Land” between American and German forces. While she never says it, the implication is there: she is no man. She is woman. Hear her roar.

    It couldn’t be a better time for a female-led superhero movie. The culture has always had an influence on Wonder Woman and vice versa. While some of the sexual stuff might still be a little icky looking back on it (there’s a lot of bondage in those early stories, but the movie is oddly kink-free, besides some mild implied lesbianism on the island), it’s dynamically progressive politics are still awe-inspiring. When the filmmakers behind “Wonder Woman” were making the movie (and, indeed, it’s led by an awesome female director, Patty Jenkins of “Monster” fame), they probably thought that the movie, opening in the summer of 2017, would be emblematic of a new political openness, heralded by the world’s greatest superpower electing a female president. Instead, it finds itself being released amidst looming legislation that would all but strip away some key rights for women.

    What this does is turn a $150 million superhero extravaganza, fueled by a huge marketing campaign and part of a larger, beastlier series of interconnected epics, into something that feels personal, powerful, and, most important of all, subversive. (At the screening I attended, the audience full of critics broke into spontaneous applause multiple times.) Wonder Woman’s symbolic importance has never been more greatly felt. Now is the perfect time for Wonder Woman. (Thank Zeus it’s a great movie, too.)

    The other aspect that makes “Wonder Woman” so essential is its apparent commentary on the current age of superhero movies. More and more, it feels like the best superhero movies are the ones that comment on what it means to be a superhero movie, everything from “Deadpool” to this year’s exemplary, ashy-bleak “Logan.” And, in many ways, “Wonder Woman” does this, too. Earlier this year, “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” opened across the universe and was both a critical and commercial hit (and for good reason — it’s a blast). But it was the 15th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Disney’s own web of related properties after which DC has obviously modeled their current enterprise); so far, not one of the movies has been focused on a female hero. In fact, there won’t be an exclusively female-led Marvel movie until “Captain Marvel” bows in the summer of 2019. That’s not great, especially when Marvel Comics has taken so many chances recently, and female characters lead books as diverse as “Thor” and “Iron Man.” While “Wonder Woman” doesn’t feature any of the fourth-wall-breaking shenanigans of “Deadpool,” it is commenting on the state of the superhero movie in its own subtle way.

    Wonder Woman has always been a character who has stood for more than what she did in the comics or on television; she has always been a part of something bigger. Whether it’s the suffragette movement, feminism, or the current climate of resistance, she’s a character who has been able to be a part of and comment on the circumstances she finds herself in. And the movie is no different.

    “Wonder Woman” should be seen on the big screen, not because it’s a female superhero movie directed by a female filmmaker (although both of those things are pretty cool) but because what she stands for, the battles that she fights, and the conflicts that rage within are utterly and irreconcilably now. This is the most essential superhero movie of the year, and one of the most fiercely entertaining.

    Wonder Woman is the hero we need right now, most of all.

  • 18 Things You Never Knew About ‘The Avengers’

    “The Avengers” changed everything.

    Its several-movies-in-the-making team-up of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes inspired every studio with similar IP to combine their various characters all under one roof; some of these movies were successful (“X-Men: Days of Future Past”) while others were “Batman v Superman” and the messy-looking “Justice League.”

    Joss Whedon’s blockbuster, with its then-$200 million opening weekend record, earned its assembling (see what we did thar?) of characters while sending other studios scrambling to populate their slates with the reigning genre in Hollywood — the comic book movie. As the film turns five years old this week (happy birthday!), here are a few things you might know about the making of the shawarma-lovin’ gang’s first (and, so far, best) adventure.
    1. Zak Penn wrote an early draft of the script, hence why he gets a story credit on the finished film. When Joss Whedon got his hands on it, he did a page-one rewrite. And then, he kind of trashed it. The director bluntly stated: “There was a script. There just wasn’t a script I was going to film a word of.” (Shots. Fired.)

    2. “I don’t think you have anything. Pretend this draft never happened.” That’s what Whedon told Marvel Studios head and “Avengers” producer Kevin Feige during a meeting on the project. (Don’t mince words, Joss, tell us what you really think.)
    3. After dropping several megatons of truth bombs, Whedon (according to Vanity Fair) “went home, wrote a five-page treatment of his Avengers vision,” and was then given the go-ahead to reshape the movie to fit his plans for it.

    4. Whedon’s document, according to Feige, “was incredibly well written and articulate and full of great ideas.” It ended with the tagline “The Avengers: Some Assembly Required.”
    5. Marvel loved that “Some Assembly Required” tagline so much that they used it to end an early teaser for the film that ran at the end of Captain America’s first film in 2011.

    6. Marvel is famous for giving their filmmakers story guidelines — think narrative tentpoles — that they want them to hit in their movies. According to a 2014 Whedon biography, the stipulations Marvel gave Whedon included: All the Avengers had to (ahem) assemble, Loki had to be involved, there needed to be a battle between the good guys by the film’s mid-point, and an even bigger final set piece battle for the end of the film between our heroes and the alien army destroying NYC.
    7. Whedon didn’t mind the above guidelines. In his 2014 biography, he said: “I was like, ‘Great, you just gave me your three acts.’ Now all I have to do is justify getting to those places and beyond them.”

    8. For years, Whedon was on Marvel’s radar for various projects. In the early 2000s, Marvel met with Whedon to discuss being involved on an Iron Man film when New Line had the rights to the project.
    9. Marvel’s offer for Whedon to write and direct the film came with several production mandates. The shoot had to be done in 92 days, with a quick turnaround for post-production and for all the film’s CG-heavy sequences.

    9. For years, Whedon was on Marvel’s radar for various projects. In the early 2000s, Marvel met with Whedon to discuss being involved on an Iron Man film when New Line had the rights to the project.
    10. Recently, storyboard animatics leaked for deleted/alternate scenes from the film. While the animatics have since been removed by Marvel’s internet ninjas, they included an alternate opening sequence where Iron Man battles a convoy of para-military looking guys (or Hydra) in a tree-lined area or jungle setting, where Iron Man’s missile firing malfunctions. His solution? Yank the missile from his launcher, throw it at the bad guy, and ignite it with a repulsor ray.

    11. Another deleted scene features Black Widow and Cap on the QuinJet, en route to Stark Tower. When asked if Tony might be susceptible to Loki’s unique brand of mind control in the film, Natasha quips something to the affect of: “Fly faster. Fly much faster.”
    12. Also, Tony’s meeting with Loki at Stark Tower was depicted different. With Tony remarking to the puny god “Solid smoke. Quality mirrors.” in response to the baddie’s shady (and violent) theatrics so far.

    13. Iron Man’s introduction in the film, cutting from Steve Rogers’ line about leaving the Tesseract in the ocean to Iron Man working underwater, was a late-in-the-edit suggestion from Feige. Originally, Iron Man was not given such a natural segue.
    14. During the lab scene aboard the Helicarrier — remember those berries Tony Stark offered Banner? Those aren’t props. They belong to RDJ. The actor reportedly kept food and snacks hidden all over the lab set and no one could find them. So anytime he eats in the final film, that’s just because Downey Jr. was hungry.

    15. The film’s tricky shooting schedule made it nearly impossible for all of the cast to be on set in New Mexico at the same time. But when they were, Chris Evans texted them one thing — “Assemble.” This lead to a great night out, according to Agent Coulson himself, Clark Gregg.
    16. In the comics, Ant-Man and the Wasp are two of the Avengers’ founding members. Whedon had to cut them from his script, however, because the film already had enough characters to juggle without those two in the mix. (And they may have also been cut because Marvel could have been early days in the planning of Ant-Man’s solo film by then.)

    17. The shawarma end-credits tag that everyone loves? It was shot the night of the film’s Hollywood premiere.
    18. Here’s the breakdown from EW on how that scene came about: “In the original script, [Tony] awakens with a start and asks, “What’s next?” But during filming, Downey was notorious for pushing for variations and felt that line could be something snappier. Whedon agreed, and penned several new versions of the scene in a notebook the day of shooting.

  • Joss Whedon Wants ‘Somebody New’ for Batgirl Movie

    It’s early days for Joss Whedon and his Batgirl movie for DC, but if you’re an up-and-coming actress, you may want to go to superheroic lengths to get the director’s attention.

    Whedon talked to USA Today at the premiere of Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” and it sounds like he’s not interested in casting an existing star for the role. He wants to create a new star through the role.

    “What I’m looking for in a Batgirl is probably somebody new. Somebody who is willing to go the distance. It is going to be hard. I want somebody who’s going to get in the trenches with me.”

    Whedon said something similar to Variety, confirming he doesn’t have his eye on anybody at this point, but “I doubt it’ll be a name”:

    He said he’s not against movie stars, but the name “Batgirl” carries a lot of weight on its own, so it’s not critical to get a big name, it’s just critical to find exactly the right Batgirl.

    Whedon is reportedly writing and directing his Batgirl based on the Barbara Gordon of DC Comics’s “New 52” re-launch, showing the Gotham girl haunted by her attack from the Joker.

    “I know what she looks like in the comic books,” Whedon continued to USA Today. “We’ll deviate if the right person is different. We haven’t even begun the conversation, but it’s about the spirit she exudes, not exactly what she looks like.”

    USA Today suggested “Batman & Robin” star Alicia Silverstone in a cameo. Whedon replied, “It hasn’t crossed my mind. I’m not against it, but I’m not looking for Easter eggs – I’m still trying to write a movie!” If he’s looking for a completely fresh start — as opposed to the more established stars cast in other major DCEU roles — then maybe he won’t want fans to be distracted by Easter egg nods to the past. We’ll see.

    The Batgirl movie, still untitled at this point, is expected to also feature other characters from Gotham. No word yet on when shooting might start or its release date.

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  • 22 Things You Never Knew About ‘The Cabin in the Woods’

    As genre films go, “The Cabin in the Woods” is an all-timer.

    Despite sitting on MGM’s shelf for awhile, before Lionsgate stepped in to release it, Drew Goodard‘s directorial debut (which he co-wrote with Joss Whedon) paid homage to the horror movie genre while both satirizing and elevating the “final girl” tropes into one of the best, and most inventive, scary movies ever. Not bad for a film that they wrote a first draft of in three days.

    As the fifth anniversary of our favorite “death by Merman”nears, here are a few things you might know about this genre classic. (And check out Film School Rejects for more trivia about the film.)
    1. Goddard and Whedon co-wrote the film to make “something for us,” according to the film’s Blu-ray commentary. At the time, both had just come off feature film projects that didn’t materialize. The two holed up in a hotel room and spent the weekend writing the first draft of the screenplay. They did a draft and then a polish later, before meeting with prospective companies and producers.

    2. So why was “Cabin” delayed? It was tangled up in MGM’s bankruptcy issues before Lionsgate rescued the film.
    3. During the time that “Cabin” sat on a shelf, both its creators started to doubt the quality of their work. But, Lionsgate was so behind the film that it re-convinced Goddard and Whedon that it was a good movie.

    4. One of the more problematic notes the filmmakers received was in regard to the film’s opening scene. The studio thought opening with Bradley Whitford and Richard Jenkins doing a walk and talk through their Los Alamos-like facility would have confused the audience. “Opening the movie with this scene is one of my favorite things that we accomplished,” says Whedon on the disc’s commentary.
    5. Goddard thought it would be a creative way to open the film, by intentionally making the audience think they had walked into the wrong movie.

    6. Chris Hemsworth filmed the role of Curt about a year before “Thor” came out, according to Whedon on the film’s commentary.
    7. Shooting the scene where Hemsworth gives the group instructions (before crashing his motorcycle into a forcefield) marked the moment Goddard knew that Hemsworth was going to become a movie star.

    8. After MGM saw the dallies of that scene, they signed Hemsworth to their “Red Dawn” remake. And then two days after that, the actor landed the role of Thor.
    9. The first day of filming was at the gas station location where the group meets Mordecai, The Harbinger.

    10. Goddard’s first day filming was kind of a crappy one, logistics-wise. When he showed up to set, it was covered in snow (that’s what he gets for shooting in Vancouver.)

    11. Actors had to audition using scene specifically written for each character. Goddard notes on the film’s commentary that The Harbinger (Tim De Zarn) was cast using a scene that had him fighting with a vending machine over a dollar while remarking on some pretty big, and kind of out there, existential ideas.
    12. That thermal coffee mug/bong that stoner Marty (Fran Kranz) uses? It was a fully functional mug and bong combo which cost $5000 to make.

    13. Goddard came this close to not directing the movie. The way Goddard remembers it, he and Whedon always planned for him to direct and Whedon to serve as producer. But according to Goddard, Whedon decided halfway through writing the screenplay that he wanted to direct the movie instead.
    14. But, according to Whedon, Goddard’s recollection can be filed under “wrong.” Whedon argues that he and his co-writer did not know while writing it who would direct. In fact, the two bounced around potential names for director — landing on Victor Salva of “Jeepers Creepers” fame.

    15. The speaker phone scene, involving The Harbinger calling in to the control center, was the first scene the duo wrote after Whedon pitched the overall idea for the film.
    16. A scene cut early in the development process (due to time) would have featured our main characters playing a game of “Truth or Dare or Lecture” while they were in the cabin. The game would have one person each take a turn to lecture someone else in the group about something they didn’t like about them. The lecture cut from the script involved Marty getting the riot act about his excessive pot use. The line “I’m living in a womb of reefer” would have been a callback to this scene.

    17. That long-ish scene in the control center, where people celebrate another successful sacrifice to the Ancient Ones? It came very close to being cut. The studio (MGM) wanted Goddard and Whedon to cut out most of it from the final film — despite the scene perfectly setting up the third act.
    18. Whedon eventually convinced his writing partner to cut the scene. So what did Goddard do? He broke down in front of him. After that, Whedon got on the phone with the studio and said they are not cutting the scene.

    19. Another memorable sequence that was on the chopping block? The Japanese horror subplot. There were internal debates as to whether or not American audiences would understand the intent here. (Judging by the laughter in theater when I saw it, audiences understood it just fine.)
    20. According to the director, the scene that tested highest with audiences was the Merman sequence.
    21. Sigourney Weaver plays The Director, overseeing this night of deadly activity. The first question she had for her director once she arrived on set was “When will the werewolf be arriving?” The once and future Ripley was very eager to finally work with a werewolf. (She even mentioned to Goddard, according to the commentary, she was kind of bummed that — when lunch came — the actor in the werewolf costume was sitting alone.)
    22. The film’s final scene, written by Whedon, is meant to be his version of the “You always were an a**hole, Gorman” scene from James Cameron’s “Aliens.”

  • Five Years Later, ‘Cabin in the Woods’ Remains Untouched

    I still remember it vividly: Lionsgate had invited me to a super early screening of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel” (he wrote some of the very best episodes in the final seasons for both series). The movie was produced in 2009 and was scheduled for release in February 2010 but was delayed because of an ill-fated 3D conversation and then financial trouble with the studio that produced it, MGM. For a while it looked like the movie would never see the light of day and a kind of growing mystique intensified around the movie, especially for fans of Whedon. Eventually, MGM sold the film to Lionsgate, a mini major that had made a name for itself primarily through its horror output, establishing long-running franchises like “Saw” and “Hostel.” It would have its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas, later that spring.

    When I sat down in the tiny screening room in midtown Manhattan, I was excited for what I was about to see and, at the same time, totally unprepared. The movie blew my mind and, on its fifth anniversary (it was finally released nationwide on April 13, 2012), it remains just as mind-blowing.

    For those of you who haven’t seen “Cabin in the Woods” (and really — what’s your excuse?), it begins with humdrum banter between a couple of office drones played by Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford (who is currently starring in a similar genre-upending horror treat, “Get Out“). There’s an ominous title card, hilariously abrasive in its “look how scary this is” outlandishness. After that, we’re introduced to our main characters, who look, at least from the outside, like the typical monster fodder from your favorite horror movie. There’s the handsome jock (a then-unknown Chris Hemsworth), the mousy nerd (Kristen Connolly), the perky blonde (Anna Hutchison), the lovable stoner (Fran Kranz), and the mysterious new guy (Jesse Williams). Except, even from the outset, they don’t follow their conventions. The jock is actually brilliant, the mousy nerd coming out of a sexually advanced relationship with a professor, the blonde has hidden depth, and the stoner is funny — not because he’s stoned but because he’s actually funny.

    Occasionally, we cut back to the two white guys we were introduced earlier; they suggest that the kids are traveling to the spooky cabin is part of a plan. It’s unclear if it’s predestined. Who exactly are these guys working for? And to what end?

    Once the kids get to the cabin, they start inhabiting the clichés — the jock becomes more outwardly aggressive, the blonde gets more air-headed (and topless). Meanwhile, the drones react positively. When the kids mistakenly awaken a family of backwoods hillbilly zombies, Goddard (who also directed) cuts back to the office to see the pool that employees had placed on the kids’ method of destruction.

    Everything gets weirder but more incisive, until it’s clear that this is a simulacrum. The characters in the movie are trapped — but so is the audience. Instead of just an entertaining, characteristically zippy horror movie, you realize you’re watching an investigation into why we, as an audience, so desperately crave an entertaining, characteristically zippy horror movie. The relationship between audience and subject is blurred; are you rooting for these attractive young people to meet grisly ends? And why? What does this mean for movies? And society at large?These are pretty heady questions, especially for a movie with so many rubber monsters. And it can be enjoyed, for sure, as just a very clever horror movie that subverts classic tropes in new and fresh ways. The ending, in particular, is satisfying in both an intellectual and emotional way that few genre films are. It really has its cake and eats it too by delivering something deeply unexpected that is also touching and probing. (If you haven’t seen the movie, I’m not giving it away here.)

    But what’s so fascinating about “Cabin in the Woods,” especially five years on, is how little it’s been imitated. That’s really a testament to its colossal power — it is so singular, so visionary, that nobody could even attempt to replicate its charms. (Think about “Scream,” which similarly blew apart the horror genre, and how many weak tea rip-offs there were in its wake, for years to come.) The magic of “Cabin in the Woods,” in its delicate tonal balance, in its willingness to both antagonize and root for its audience, in its sardonic wit and irreverence, hit on something that was impossible to copy. Five years later, it’s a dazzling tour de force and unlike anything in the horror genre before or since.

    “Cabin in the Woods” is also one of the rare movies that wears its influences on its sleeve and interprets those references, reconstructing them into something new and thrilling, something wholly unique. (The films of Quentin Tarantino and Edgar Wright also come to mind.) It’s easy, especially in today’s hashtag-stuffed culture, to just sit back and watch a movie and count all of the Easter eggs and shout-outs to other, better films. “Cabin in the Woods” paid homage while forging its own path. And that’s amazing. It’s a Frankenstein’s monster of a horror film that still manages to be something that is totally its own thing. It doesn’t stop to point out how clever it is or to double-underline its points of reference. Instead it forges its own blood-soaked path.

    And that’s really the legacy of “Cabin in the Woods” a half-decade later — that nobody had ever seen anything like it before and nobody has seen anything like it since. It’s a rare movie that is as thrilling as it is subversive, as bloody as it is brilliant; a movie that dared to be something different and new while acknowledging everything that came before it. All of this leads to a movie that is still untouchable.

  • Joss Whedon to Write/Direct Batgirl Standalone Movie for DC: Report

    SKOREA-ENTERTAINMENT-MOVIE-AVENGERSShiny! Joss Whedon is reportedly crossing the superhero aisle from Marvel to DC to direct — and write, and produce — an as-yet-untitled Batgirl movie.

    Variety posted the news, saying Whedon was “nearing a deal” on the DC Extended Universe project, so it’s not 100 percent official yet. They added that the new project only originated in the past month.

    Warner Bros. and DC just had a big presence at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, talking about upcoming DCEU movies “Wonder Woman,” “Justice League,” and “Aquaman.” A Batman solo movie, “The Batman,” is also in the works, along with “Gotham City Sirens,” bringing back Margot Robbie‘s Harley Quinn from “Suicide Squad,” along with DC’s other leading bad girls. And Batgirl? No idea yet. But Variety said this standalone project “will also feature other characters from the world of Gotham.”

    Here’s the DC Comics bio for Batgirl, aka Barbara Gordon:

    “A prodigy ahead of her time? Check. Fought toe-to-toe with Gotham’s most unsavory? Double-check. Bailed out the Dark Knight on countless occasions? Capital C check.

    Batgirl is Barbara Gordon, a confident young woman as committed to justice as her father, Gotham City’s top cop Commissioner Gordon. But when her overprotective Dad forbids her from joining the force, her admiration of Batman leads her to rebel the way crime-fighting rebels do in Gotham City: by picking up the mantle of the Bat.

    An exceptional fighter and detective, Batgirl is also unparalleled in her computer skills. With a Utility Belt filled with Batarangs and her own Batcycle to speed her across the city, she pursues justice regardless of whether others—including Batman—wish her to. But Gotham’s criminals are a ruthless and maniacal lot, and every moment she risks her neck means dancing closer to death.”

    Sources told Entertainment Weekly that this standalone movie will use the DC Comics “New 52” version of Batgirl as a starting point.

    Whedon created the “Buffy” universe, “Dollhouse,” and “Firefly,” and most recently wrote and directed “The Avengers” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron” for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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  • Watch a ‘Sh*t-Ton’ of Marvel Stars Pimp Out Mark Ruffalo to Get You to Vote

    Well, now it’s a campaign promise: If you got to SavetheDay.Vote and register to vote for the 2016 presidential election, then vote on November 8, Mark Ruffalo will do a nude scene in his next movie. Or, as his Marvel “Avengers” co-stars put it:

    Robert Downey Jr: “Mark’s gonna have his d*ck out.”

    Scarlett Johansson: “Full Markie.”

    Color us sold! “Avengers” director Joss Whedon — also the guy behind “Firefly,” “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D,” “Buffy,” etc — brought a “sh-t-ton” of his actors together for this “Save the Day” video begging people to vote on Tuesday, November 8.

    There’s a lot of Marvel talent in the video, among others, including Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Don Cheadle, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Julianne Moore, James Franco, Stanley Tucci, Nathan Fillion, Martin Sheen, Keegan-Michael Key, Rosie Perez, Neil Patrick Harris, Yvette Nicole Brown, and more.

    RDJ, anchors the video because he is “the most popular or memorable actor.” Not sure why poor Mark Ruffalo ended up the one tagged for a nude scene, but … no complaints if it happens.

    Mark Ruffalo: “No, no, no. What, nobody talked about… They should just vote ’cause it matters, you know. Don’t you think?”

    Nah, we need incentive.

    Check it out:Because Internet commenters hate being told what to do by the celebrities they made rich by watching their movies, many are saying this video has just inspired them to get out and vote for Trump. Hey, as long as you’re voting!

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  • Best TV Shows to Watch That Never Won an Award

    the wireIn this golden age of television, the sheer amount of quality programming makes it impossible for the Emmys to recognize every show worthy of awards, which is both wonderful and incredibly frustrating. The following five shows are perfect examples of the how the Emmys failed to recognize brilliance.

    ‘The Wire’ (2002 – 2008)

    It’s often at the top of the critics’ charts when it comes to the greatest television shows of all time … so how exactly did “The Wire” only manage to garner two Emmy nominations for writing over the course of five seasons? It’s one of television’s greatest mysteries. While the gritty drama about the drug scene in Baltimore may have been too intense and dark to gain traction with voters, “The Wire” certainly paved the way for a show like meth-fueled “Breaking Bad” to win multiple Emmys.

    ‘Parks and Recreation’ (2009 – 2015)

    On the comedy side, NBC’s “Parks and Recreation” definitely takes the crown when it comes to the best shows that never won at the Emmys. While it started as a poor imitation of “The Office,” “Parks” became a unicorn among the more cynical sitcoms. Amy Poehler was a perennial Best Actress nominee for her iconic portrayal of Leslie Knope, but she only took home one Golden Globe over the course of the seven-season run. The ensemble was one of the strongest on television with Chris Pratt, Aubrey Plaza, Adam Scott, and Rob Lowe representing the wacky citizens of Pawnee. But the biggest injustice is the fact that Nick Offerman never got a single nomination for his work as Ron Swanson, the gruff government-hating boss with a heart of gold. To quote Ron, “Awards are stupid. But they’d be less stupid if they went to the right people.”

    ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ (1997 – 2003)

    “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” never really had a chance with Emmy voters, given that it was a show about vampires airing on the WB. If voters had looked closer at Joss Whedon‘s masterpiece, they would have seen that it wasn’t just about killing vampires. “Buffy” was never afraid to tackle subjects like school violence, substance abuse, and teens coming to terms with their sexuality, and it did so unflinchingly. Sarah Michelle Gellar‘s Buffy gave girls a heroine to look up to, as she proved that the blonde cheerleader was also capable of kicking demon ass.

    ‘Community’ (2009 – 2015)

    Fiercely beloved by the few who watched it, Community” is a gem that the Emmys never paid much attention to. While the episode titled “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” did win an Creative Arts Emmy for animation, “Community” was mostly ignored when it came to the Primetime Emmys. It netted only one nomination in writing — for the brilliant “Remedial Chaos Theory” — over the course of its six seasons. “Community” was the perfect show for pop culture nerds, as it played all sorts of television tropes, from homages to “Law & Order” to spoofing clip shows and spaghetti Westerns.

    ‘Penny Dreadful’ (2014 – 2016)

    The show just aired its last season, but there is still hope that awards bodies will catch on to Showtime’s Gothic thriller “Penny Dreadful.” Just wrapping up its third season, “Penny Dreadful” imagines a Victorian London where Dorian Gray, Victor Frankenstein, and Henry Jekyll team up with original characters to battle vampires, witches, and the devil himself. In a just world, Doctor Who” alum Billie Piper as a vengeful Bride of Frankenstein with a feminist agenda and ’90s hunk Josh Hartnett as Ethan Chandler, a sharpshooter with a terrible secret. It is genuinely terrifying every week, and Emmy voters should absolutely pay attention.

    Sources

  • 15 Times Joss Whedon Made You Ugly-Cry

    For a show that was supposed to be scary and action-packed, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” gave us a strong case of the ugly-cries almost on a weekly basis. Blade its creator, Joss Whedon.

    The writer-director loves to kill off the characters you care about the most, as evidenced by his impressive list of TV shows. He also seems to get a rise out of RIP-ing your favorites on the big screen.

    In honor of Whedon’s birthday this week, from “Buffy” to “The Avengers,” here all all the times he made you reach for the kleenex on both the big and small screens.

  • Best TV Shows for Sci-Fi Fans

    The 100In the same way “Game of Thrones” made fantasy cool again, the return of classic franchises like “Battlestar Galactica” has brought sci-fi back to mainstream audiences in the form of big budget, concept-heavy prime time TV shows. If you’re a sci-fi fan looking to delve deeper into the genre or a newbie ready to check out the fundamentals of TV science fiction, check out these shows — and buckle up for some journeys into time, space, and other dimensions.

    ‘The 100’ (2014 – )

    “The 100” (pronounced “The Hundred”) is a post-apocalyptic drama that borrows heavily from predecessors like “Lost” and “The Walking Dead” — only this time, the band of survivors is made up of teenage delinquents exiled from a space station thought to be humanity’s last refuge from nuclear war. Naturally, when they return to Earth, they find they’re not alone — and the fun of “The 100” lies in the conflicts between the surviving factions. Like most shows on the CW, there’s as much crying as there is action, but it works for “The 100,” and the show remains grounded (no pun intended) by the harsh realities of post-apocalyptic survival. More fun than “The Hunger Games” and less brutal than “Lord of the Flies,” “The 100” is great at keeping the pressure on and bringing its audience back each week.

    ‘Doctor Who’ (2005 – )

    “Doctor Who” is a science fiction institution — the BBC show has been on and off the air for more than 50 years, as well as kept alive in audio plays, comic books, novels, and of course, fan fiction. The show follows the Doctor, a brilliant yet goofy Time Lord traveling throughout space and time with a human companion, righting the wrongs of the universe one episode at a time. While “Doctor Who” is grounded in traditional sci-fi — the Doctor is no stranger to aliens, time-travel paradoxes, or space battles — above all else, the show is mostly lighthearted and fun. What’s more, “Doctor Who” has one of the largest international fan bases of any show, so wherever you are, there are likely to be hardcore fans — dubbed Whovians — nearby.

    ‘Rick and Morty’ (2013 – )

    Don’t let the playful animation fool you: “Rick and Morty” is a dark, cynical, and hilarious sci-fi show that follows the adventures of a genius alcoholic sociopath and his idiot grandson. Created by Community”) and Justin Roiland, “Rick and Morty” has become a sci-fi classic as the pair explores multiple dimensions, space, and the occasional high school dance. Guest voices, including Stephen Colbert, David Cross, and Werner Herzog, delightfully augment off-the-wall characters. And be sure to keep watching after the credits — each episode closes with a coda that takes a grim joke from the story even further.

    ‘Firefly’ (2002 – 2003)

    Perhaps the most beloved sci-fi show in recent memory, “Firefly” is Star Trek,” half “Gunsmoke” — while it’s set in space, many of the costumes and story lines recall classic Westerns, giving the show a futuristic-but-timeless feel. Audiences rallied for the show after its cancellation, which eventually led to the follow-up feature film “Serenity.” Even so, unsatisfied, passionate fans (who refer to themselves as “Browncoats”) still circulate petitions around the internet begging producers to revive “Firefly,” and cast reunion panels are the crown jewels of Comic-Cons lucky enough to host them.

    ‘Quantum Leap’ (1989 – 1993)

    “Quantum Leap” told the story of Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula), a scientist lost in time, occupying other people’s lives. In each episode, Sam had to be someone new and work to fix a problem in that person’s life in order to make his next leap — forever hoping he would someday leap home. The show was satisfying both as a sci-fi show and a mystery show — the drama revolved around protecting the timeline of history as much as it did keeping the audience wondering who was controlling where Sam leaped. After garnering four Emmys and a cult following, “Quantum Leap” ended with a finale that was well earned and worth the wait.

    Sources

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