We’re now learning more details about some of the challenges that came along with Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron and what lessons the process imparted on both the studio and director.
Before Joss Whedon made an ill-fated stab at taking over DC’s Justice League in 2017 following original director Zack Snyder’s departure due to a family tragedy, the director was perhaps best known for proving the Marvel Cinematic Universe may have lasting power by successfully helming 2012’s The Avengers.
Despite reputational hits the director has since taken from a string of former collaborators who made numerous and serious allegations against him, Marvel Studios still considers Whedon to be in good standing with them.
That bit of insight comes from a new book officially endorsed by Marvel, called The Story of Marvel Studios: The Making of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
According to the book, Marvel now recognizes some of the shortcomings of the film, which had mediocre reviews upon release in 2015. But Marvel studios also said it holds no ill will against Whedon, though the director was quite vocal to the press about how difficult helming the film was and its accompanying inherited storylines from previous movies.
From then on, the failure cemented Marvel’s resolve to make sequels justified in their reason to exist, rather than just being an exposition dump to set up future movies.
As for Whedon, he reflected that there could’ve been aspects that were better, but in the end, he feels the end product accomplished everything it needed to under the circumstances.
“There are parts of it where I’m like, ‘That could have been better’… But don’t get me wrong, there are parts of it where I think, That’s exactly where it needs to be. ‘I look at the conflict, and it’s hard to deal with sometimes. And then I look at the movie and I’m like, ‘Everything that I was trying to say, it’s all here?'”
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