‘Justice League’ Director Joss Whedon Claps Back, Claims Gal Gadot Misunderstood His ‘Annoyingly Flowery’ Speech
Justice League director Joss Whedon was accused of using abusive language by several of the 2017 film’s stars, including Gal Gadot. But in a new interview, Whedon addresses the allegations and claims Gadot misunderstood him.
Director Joss Whedon was accused of misconduct by some of the ‘Justice League’ cast
Whedon took over Justice League when writer/director Zack Snyder stepped down from the project due to a family tragedy. After reworking the script, he reshot scenes with cast, and released the film in 2017.
But in 2020, some of the stars came forward to accuse Whedon of abuses on set. Ray Fisher, who plays the hero Cyborg, claimed the director used inappropriate language and threatened his career. And in 2021, Gadot, who portray Diana Prince/Wonder Woman, supported Fisher’s sentiments. And she revealed she had her own issues with Whedon while filming.
“I’m happy for Ray to go out and speak his truth,” Gadot told the LA Times. “I wasn’t there with the guys when they shot with Joss Whedon — I had my own experience with [him], which wasn’t the best one.”
“But I took care of it there and when it happened,” she added. “I took it to the higher-ups, and they took care of it. But I’m happy for Ray to go up and say his truth.”
Joss Whedon says ‘Justice League’ star Gal Gadot misunderstood him
Whedon, who was also accused of misconduct by stars of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, stepped away from his current series, The Nevers, in light of the allegations. And now, years after Fisher and Gadot made their accusations, the filmmaker is addressing the controversy.
In a new feature for Vulture, Whedon recalled the incident with Gadot and claimed she argued with him about a scene she wanted to omit. The director said he told her it would get removed over his “dead body.” He suggested Gadot didn’t understand because of English skills, and mistakenly assumed he was talking about her.
“English is not her first language, and I tend to be annoyingly flowery in my speech,” Whedon told the outlet. “Then I was told that I had said something about her dead body and tying her to the railroad track.”
Gal Gadot says she understood perfectly
Whedon suggests Gadot didn’t understand his language. But talking to Vulture, the Wonder Woman star cleared things up and noted she ” understood perfectly.”
Back in 2021, Gadot talked about the experience with Whedon and said she immediately took her complaints to studio heads so that they knew what was going on. “I was shaking trees as soon as it happened,” she told Elle. “And I must say that the heads of Warner Brothers, they took care of it.”
“Going back to the sense of righteousness that I have…you’re dizzy because you can’t believe this was just said to you,” Gadot added. “And if he says it to me, then obviously he says it to many other people. I just did what I felt like I had to do. And it was to tell people that it’s not OK.”
The star also questioned whether Whedon would have treated her differently if she was a man. “Would he tell me what he told me had I been a man?” Gadot wondered d. “I don’t know. We’ll never know — I was shocked by the way that he spoke to me. But whatever, it’s done. Water under the bridge.”
