After many months of quiet, Joss Whedon has responded to the allegations made against him by actors Ray Fisher and Gal Gadot in an interview with Vulture. Fisher’s complaints of being treated in a “gross, abusive, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable” manner when Whedon stepped in for Zack Snyder as director of Justice League led to an internal investigation that concluded with “remedial action.”

In the new interview, Whedon said that the claim that he lightened Fisher’s skin tone in post-production is “false and unjust,” and that he gave the entire film a lighter, more colorful look, as compared to Snyder’s typically darker look. (One can compare the theatrically released version and the four-hour Zack Snyder’s Justice League cut on HBO Max and judge for oneself.)

Whedon also said that Fisher ended up with less time on screen in his version because he felt that the character Cyborg’s storyline “made no sense” and because, as Vulture’s Lila Shapiro summarized, Whedon felt Fisher’s acting was bad. (Numerous fans on Twitter have disagreed.) The director also claimed that he and Fisher spent hours discussing the changes and their working relationship was friendly and respectful.

After Fisher’s accusations were made public, Gal Gadot also claimed that Whedon “threatened her career.” Whedon denied this as well: “I don’t threaten people. Who does that?” He also added that the Israeli actress does not speak English as a first language, and suggested that this may have been the root of the miscommunication. 

Gadot told Vulture that she “understood perfectly.” (Fisher did not respond to the new interview.)

Whedon also attacked Snyder’s vociferous online fans, saying, “they don’t give a fuck about feminism.” He added, “I was made a target by my ex-wife, and people exploited that cynically.” (His former wife, Kai Cole, previously wrote that “he used his relationship with me as a shield…so no one would question his relationships with other women or scrutinize his writing as anything other than feminist.”)

Fisher and Gadot are not the only colleagues who have spoken out about Whedon. In February 2021, Buffy the Vampire Slayer stars Charisma Carpenter and Amber Benson said that working with Whedon was a “toxic” environment. Co-stars Sarah Michelle Gellar and Michelle Trachtenberg offered their support.

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