Photo: ABC
How Joss Whedon Determines Whether His Characters Live Or Die
Our Players
Hi, I'm Joss Whedon.
Hello, I'm The Interview Extender.
The Scene
Hey, nice to see you.
Joss, your line about not being able to kill off Clark Gregg's character, Agent Coulson, was so funny that I had to tweet it, and it kept getting retweeted throughout your panel.
Oh, haha, that's funny.
But of course that just means fans are going to start making their own lists of which other actors you've killed off--
You know, as soon as I said it, I thought, "People are going to take that the wrong way."
But you do you know you have this reputation for killing off your characters.
I don't think it's a fair estimation of my work, but yeah, I live in the world, so I do know.
So you'd probably say that in the past, when you've killed characters off, it hasn't been because you didn't think the actors who played them were untalented.
[laughing] You're right, that hasn't been the reason.
It's just that they were less talented than Clark Gregg.
I wouldn't say that.
Why did you kill off so many of the characters you've created, then? It's really something that sets you apart from other writer-directors. Judd Apatow loves his characters so much he puts them in movies that are as long as TV seasons, practically.
Hey man, Judd's a friend.
He does do that, though. Come on.
...Yeah.
Not to change the subject, but how do you counter this reputation you've earned for yourself?
Well, it's pretty simple: I have to do what's right for the story, and sometimes that means removing a character from it, so that the ones that are left can react in the appropriate or logical or dramatic ways to that loss.
And that, for example, is why you killed off Tara on Buffy.
Yes. Welllllll...no.
What was the reason?
Amber Benson kept parking in my spot.
Haha, that's good.
She did. I asked my assistant to tell her once. She said she did. And Amber did it again, and I was just like, "That's enough."
Really.
Yeah. It's really annoying!
What about Wesley, who was played by Alexis Denisof?
Alexis got me something really shitty for my birthday.
What?
I don't even remember, I just remember I hated it.
Robia--
I remember! It was a really cool Stickley chair -- I thought. Then I was putting it in my car to take it home and I saw that it was a reproduction. Bye bye, Wesley!
I see.
You were going to ask about Robia LaMorte? Jenny Calendar, right?
I was.
Dude, her breath. She'd come over and ask me a question about the script, and it was like fifty pots of gas station coffee had died in her gut.
Wow.
I know. It was terrible.
I-- I have to ask, if people around you know that you're so touchy -- or, not touchy...particular! -- do you find it's hard to get the same performers to work with you more than once?
No. Because I'm fucking with you.
You are?
Yes, of course I am! [laughing] You thought I was serious?
You really seemed serious!
Nooooo, no, I just made all that up.
Well, that's a relief! Because you sounded crazy!
No, no. Just kidding. The real reason those people all got fired is that my astrologer did their charts and told me I should.
[laughing]
Why is that funny?
...
...
I should go.
I think you should.