Between the recent Television Critics Association winter press tour and the 18th Annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards, there's been a lot of news trickling in about related Joss Whedon projects like "The Avengers 2," ABC's would-be "S.H.I.E.L.D." TV show, and more. Perhaps most interesting is Whedon recently admitting that he would have loved to direct "Star Wars: Episode VII" and that he's bummed there's no way his busy schedule would allow it.
I'm as angry as you should be," Whedon told CNN at the CCMAs about being unable to take on the next 'Star Wars' film. "When I heard that I was like, 'I wonder… no, I really can't do that. Oh, I already have a job.' I wouldn't clear the Avengers. I'm having so much fun with that sequel right now, just with the script, that I couldn't imagine not doing it."
He may not be involved, but the filmmaker still has an opinion of where he'd like to see the series go. "I'd like to see a little edge," he said. "We all missed the Han [Solo] of it. It got very portentous, which was justified by the story, but I think we'd all like to see a little anarchy in the mix."
So what's next for "The Avengers 2"? The director said he'll be done with the script in a few months, but he won't neccesarily try to top himself. Instead, Whedon suggested he'd delve deeper into the characters. "Don’t go bigger; go deeper," he told MTV (see below). All of these people have met, so you have that out of the way. Now you can spend your time just digging in, and by digging in, I mean with a scalpel, to cause pain."
Coming up even sooner is the pilot for the "S.H.I.E.L.D." series, which Whedon himself will direct in about a week's time. "We fast-tracked it, and we'll see it a lot earlier than the other (shows)," ABC president Paul Lee told reporters last week at TCA. "We're very hopeful that's going to go to series… It's a great script."
Whedon told MTV that "S.H.I.E.L.D." will balance scale and more human-level dynamics. "You have to bring a bit of spectacle to it. It’s got to be bigger than your average cop show. But at the end of the day, it’s about the peripheral people," he said. "It’s about the people on the edges of the grand adventures. The whole point of the show is that even with all these big things, the little things matter. It’s about people who don’t have super powers. There will be some people with powers, there will be FX, and there will be the spectacle of science-fiction storytelling, but all played on a very human, small level."
In admitting to press at TCA that the TV series will take place after "The Avengers," not before (as some had speculated), Paul Lee essentially confirmed that if Clark Gregg (aka Agent Phil Coulson) comes back (which is the current plan), they'll have to manage to resurrect him in some manner. “There is no question that it is part of the Marvel Universe. In fact, the story takes place after the battle for New York," he said.
Lee told reporters that Whedon will be "very engaged" in the series, and Whedon confirmed that as Marvel's Grand Poobah overseer, he'll be involved in every aspect of the movies and TV shows that are being developed. "I read all the scripts and I give notes on everything," he told MTV. "I’ll look at cuts when they’re ready to show me. I’ll talk to directors if they want to. I try to make myself useful without being intrusive. I’ve gotten to be a part of all of them. That’s a dream job for a kid like me."
"The Avengers 2" is scheduled to arrive in theaters in 2015. "S.H.I.E.L.D." shoots this month, but ABC will decide if the show goes to series before anyone has a chance to see it.