Avengers director Joss Whedon's supporters have been few and far between ever since he was hit with a series of troubling allegations by former colleagues, but one actor who worked closely with the filmmaker on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly and big-screen spinoff, Serenity, has now come out in defence of the filmmaker.
Several prominent individuals in the film/TV industry, including Justice League stars Ray Fisher and Gal Gadot, Buffy's Amber Benson and more, accused Whedon of crass, abusive and grossly unprofessional behaviour last year, and details shared by Angel alum Charisma Carpenter, in particular, took things to a rather shocking new level.
Whedon eventually responded with a "tell-all" interview, but did himself no favours by basically shifting the blame for his situation to his accusers.
Even so, Nathan Fillion (The Suicide Squad) readily admits that he'd have no problem working with Whedon again in the future.
"I would work with him again in a second," the actor said during an interview with the "Inside of You" podcast (via Variety). When asked how he would describe the man, Fillion replied, "Funny. Self-deprecating. Incredibly talented. Maybe a little haunted? I mean, listen, by his own admission that guy’s a work in progress and I appreciate that."
Of course, just because Fillion didn't happen to have any negative experiences with Whedon, doesn't mean these allegations don't hold any weight, and, inadvertently or otherwise, this sort of response does come off as a bit of a dismissal. Toxic, abusive individuals don't treat everyone they encounter the same way, which seems to be too much for certain people to wrap their heads around when they're asked these type of questions in interviews.
What do you guys make of Fillion's comments? Be sure to share your thoughts in the usual place.