Joss Whedon: Reinventing Entertainment2

By Brittany Frederick, Jun 07, 2011 in Pop Culture

Joss Whedon: Reinventing Entertainment

If you haven’t heard the name Joss Whedon, you’ve been living under a rock. The multi-hyphenate is practically worshipped the world over for his creation of cult TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, and Dollhouse. Whedon has also created Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, directed an episode of Glee, brought Firefly to the big screen with Serenity, and is at the helm of Marvel’s highly anticipated feature film The Avengers. Geeks adore him, and everyone else recognizes that he’s left his mark in the entertainment world.

Throwing Stones – Don’t You Forget About Me

If you’re looking for something reminiscent of the Joss Whedon brand, you’ll find familiar themes in all kinds of media from film to television to the Internet, including the online series Throwing Stones, where high school students unite against someone – or something – out to get them. But how did Whedon create that brand?

Whedon’s career started with stints on the TV series Roseanne (1989-1990) and Parenthood (1990) before he first penned Buffy The Vampire Slayer as a feature film in 1992. He wrote for, but was not credited on, Speed (1994) and Waterworld (1995). Given how Waterworld is regarded as one of the biggest flops of all time, it was probably for the best. Whedon had much better luck when he was credited as a co-writer on Pixar’s classic Toy Story (also 1995).

Things finally took off for Joss when Buffy The Vampire Slayer returned as a TV series on the now-defunct WB in 1997. Buffy was “girl power” before “girl power” became popular, and it resonated with the network’s young adult audience. The show made names out of then-unknowns including Sarah Michelle Gellar (Ringer), David Boreanaz (Bones), Alyson Hannigan (How I Met Your Mother), Charisma Carpenter (Greek), Eliza Dushku (White Collar), and James Marsters (Smallville). Two years later, in 1999, Boreanaz and Carpenter moved to their own series when the spinoff Angel was launched. Buffy lasted until 2003 and Angel until 2004. Both series created Whedon’s place in genre television history.

During this time, Whedon launched a third television series, FOX’s Firefly, in 2002. Though it lasted only twelve episodes, Firefly may be the most talked-about deceased TV show ever. (Ask any of the fans who find a way to bring Firefly into any conversation about star Nathan Fillion’s current series Castle.) Almost a decade after its cancellation, “Browncoats” have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity with annual screenings of the feature film Serenity. He also wrote the Dark Horse Comics series Fray, which took place in the future of the Buffy/Angel universe, from 2001-2003.

After the demise of Firefly, Joss worked on several different projects across various mediums: he attempted to launch Buffy: The Animated Series in 2004, wrote and directed Serenity in 2005, and also tried his hand at TV directing with a stint on The Office in 2007. That same year, he began the Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season Eight comic book series (slated to continue into Season Nine). In 2008, he brought us the award-winning Internet series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, which featured Firefly captain Fillion, social networking-royalty Felicia Day, and Neil Patrick Harris, who co-stars with Alyson Hannigan on How I Met Your Mother.

He returned to television – and to FOX – in 2009 with Dollhouse, a vehicle for Buffy alum Dushku. The series centered around human “dolls” who could be programmed with temporary personalities and skills at the whim of clients. Darker and more complex than his past shows, the series didn’t really find its footing until the end of its first season, and was cancelled after its second. It included appearances from previous Whedon collaborators like Amy Acker (Angel), Alan Tudyk and Summer Glau (Firefly), and Alexis Denisof (Buffy, Angel and husband of Alyson Hannigan).

After Dollhouse, Whedon has moved into more mainstream projects. He directed Harris in an episode of Glee in 2010. Having written for Marvel Comics in the past with Astonishing X-Men, he is currently a major part of their feature film efforts. In addition to being named the co-writer and director of The Avengers, which will unite the heroes of Marvel’s various individual superhero franchises, Joss is also listed as a co-writer on this summer’s Captain America: The First Avenger, starring Chris Evans. If the legacy of his various cult hits wasn’t enough, working on such star-studded, major motion pictures has definitely brought Joss Whedon’s name into the public consciousness.

Throwing Stones – Can You Hear Me Now?

Throwing Stones – Broken Window Theory

Watch more episodes of the teen horror series THROWING STONES

Brittany Frederick is an award-winning freelance entertainment journalist who reaches millions of people around the world every day with her unique blend of sophisticated analysis, sarcastic humor, and varied life experience. She maintains her own blog (DigitalAirwaves.net) and you can follow her on Twitter (@tvbrittanyf).