Joss Whedon Reflects On AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON's Failings, Clashing With Marvel Studios, And More
Last year, Whedon made some unflattering comments about Marvel Studios, and he addresses both those and where he went wrong with Avengers: AOU in this revealing Q&A with Mark Ruffalo.
Avengers: Age of Ultron was great, but it didn't top The Avengers either critically or financially, and that was enough for some to write it off as a "disappointment." Of course, somone who seemed to agree with that statement to at least some extent was writer and director Joss Whedon, especially when he talked openly about clashing with Marvel and having to fight to keep scenes like Hawkeye spending time with his family in the movie in exchange for that bizarre cave sequence featuring Thor (something seemingly forced on him by the studio).
However, talking at the SVA Theatre in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood as part of the Tribeca Film Festival’s Talk series, it seems Whedon has some regrets about what he said during the Avengers: Age of Ultron press tour. "Ultron, I’m very proud of. There were things that did not meet my expectations of myself and then I was so beaten down by the process. Some of that was conflicting with Marvel, which is inevitable and a lot of that was about my own work and I was also exhausted, and we right away went and did publicity. I created the narrative — wherein I’m not quite accomplished at– and people just ran with (about Ultron) ‘Well it’s OK, it could be better, but it’s not Joss’ fault’ and I think that did a disservice to the movie, and to the studio and to myself. Ultimately, it wasn’t the right way to be because I’m very proud about it."
He continued: "The things about it that are wrong frustrate me enormously, but I got to make an absurdly personal movie about humanity and what it means in a very esoteric and bizarre ways for hundreds of millions of dollars. The fact that Marvel gave me that opportunity twice is so bonkers and beautiful and the fact that I come off as a miserable failure is also bonkers, but not in a cute way." Whedon's next project remains a mystery, but Deadline caught up with the filmmaker after this Q&A, and he reportedly told them that he remains open to working on another Marvel movie and hopes they feel the same way about him...