Earlier today, geek guru Joss Whedon posted an open letter on fansite Whedonesque.com announcing a $10,000 bid for the rights to the Terminator franchise. (The Financial Times first reported the very real auction, with Sony Pictures and Summit Entertainment reputedly among those in the running.) Almost immediately, the web lit up wondering just how serious Whedon was (sample suggestion for how he’d change the franchise: “Christian Bale’s John Connor will get a throat lozenge”). So EW phoned Whedon, and asked him: Was he just being funny? Or making a bid for the franchise by way of being funny?
His first response: “What do you mean, funny?! You think $10,000 is funny?!”
His second response: “Here’s the thing: It’s not a slam on The Terminator. I love The Terminator. That part’s totally true. I was thinking to myself, ‘Not since they auctioned off frames from The Little Mermaid have I wished I had more money this much. So you know what, never hurts to ask.’ I loved the movies, even the later movies. I loved the mythology. I loved the TV show [The Sarah Connor Chronicles]–like, really loved. Not for pretend. And not just because of [star] Summer [Glau].
“But mostly, it’s just me being a dumb-ass, because that seems to be what I do best — I’m not even very good at that. So, no, I do not think they’re going to call me and say ‘Congratulations! We’ll have that $10,000 now.’ Although, it would be non-exclusive. Other people could make Terminator movies and TV shows too. I’m just putting that out there in case you publish this.
“But I adore the franchise. I literally did learn a huge amount from that [franchise]. [The Terminator] came out when I was in college, and I was like, This is how you construct a story. It’s very important to me. That part was true. The part where I think I’m going to get it, not so true. And certain ideas, like [bidding for] The Lord of the Rings and the Batman franchise, also possibly not true. If they will give them to me for $10,000, I absolutely would write a check. That’s true. They just didn’t say those [properties] were for sale. They said they were on back-order, is what I understand. It’s all ridiculous, but it comes from love.”
So there you have it, but all joking aside, no matter who actually ends up controlling the rights to the Terminator, it seems like Whedon just made a savvy play to be the new creative force behind it. Would you like to see him try his hand at the franchise, or do you think there is someone better suited to it?
Photo Credit: Albert L. Ortega/PR Photos
Joss Whedon rocks! I would love to see him take on this project. He can put a whole new spin on the franchise.
Oh I’d love to see him take over. Wouldn’t it be swell if he resurrected the TV show…impossible, but swell.
I’d rather see him do a Buffy movie! Or at least put SMG in the Terminator he cld possibly make! Those 2 make beautiful things together!
Joss Whedon needs to find a way to express his genius. He needs to be independent of studios and networks, so he can be free to tell his stories before they get canceled. I will never forgive Fox for killing FIREFLY.
I agree Firefly ending so soon was tragic. I would love to see Whedon put his creative touches to the Terminator.
Oh lord people get over it. Whedonites are overdoing it quite a bit, it’s like FOX execs were found to be molesting blind kittens with cancer instead of just canceling a TV show lol
“Oh lord people get over it. Whedonites are overdoing it quite a bit, it’s like FOX execs were found to be molesting blind kittens with cancer instead of just canceling a TV show lol”
Qouted for humour and truth.
If he can get TSCC back on TV next to Dollhouse, and get them BOTH the marketing they deserve, he could have a serious juggernaut on his hands.
Will it happen? Nah. But it could.
Dollhouse is (sadly) doomed, so getting back TSCC is SO not going to happpen.
Why does Joss put up with FOX when they treat his shows SO POORLY?!?!??!?!
Would be a bit of an odd fit, but I’ll watch anything by Joss Whedon.
I’d like to see him team up with Josh Friedman, Toni Graphia, Zack Stentz and Ashley Miller instead of bringing in his gang (Minear, Espenson et co), but beyond that, I’d love nothing more than to see Terminator wind up in the right hands for change.
And the prospect of crazy Whedon fans and crazy T:SCC fans uniting is a scary prospect indeed. Hope it happens.
Wow! That would be a massive, unstoppable group with a highly unstable (but still fun) mass psychosis.
Joss Whedon + Terminator = a fun time!!!
Joss + anything = a fun time.
Joss + this joke = ridiculous
Joss Whedon is a great fan but, please, he already screwed up Alien. Keep him away from The Terminator.
your lack of information is showing…The alien script Joss Whedon wrote was drastically altered by the time the last frame was shot. Please get a clue before stating nonsense.
Yeah, wtf, but Atlantis and Titan AE happened. And Firefly got canceled and the Wonder Woman and Goners projects got shelved and Dollhouse is a disaster and Cabin in the Woods has been pushed back a year it’s such a mess. I think this is a joke offer, there’s not really any need to fight, but I don’t think Katie’s stupid, I think she has a point. I think you owe Katie an apology.
Mitchell’s right. Joss Whedon has done some great stuff, but only the cultists believe he’s got the Midas touch. His track record indicates anything but.
no mitchell’s incredibly uninformed.
cabin in the woods tested so well that they’re now upgrading it to 3D to make sure its a theatrical presence, dumbass.
and how would katie be owed an apology? she wasnt called stupid, she was called on her lack of information. which is true.
the script Joss submitted was rewritten.
so should we blame Kevin Smith for Superman Returns too? or JJ Abrams? both wrote scripts that were ripped apart by Warner Bros. and Superman Returns was the result.
I agree. Whedon doesn’t have a midas touch, and the only his cult followers and entertainment publications seem to think he’s the BEST THING EVER. The initial success of Buffy and Angel prob had more to do with them being on the WB in late 90s and being part of the teen/tween explosion of that era.
Surely you must be right, since your logic is so sound. Case in point: teens/tweens never explode at any other time.
….and here we go. No such thing as the Midas touch for people who are actually talented. And you’d be a fool to believe that. Momma Whedon didn’t raise no fool. However, Joss DOES have the ability to consistently write engaging stories. How things go from page to screen is largely a roll of the dice. In short, if Joss writes it, I’ll watch it. My rule of thumb. YMMV.
Joss Whedon + Big Franchise = Epic Flop
Is it just me, or does $10,000 seem really low for the rights to the franchise?
I thought it was a joke on his part. That’s why he said he was a dumb@ss
Nothing gets by you.
There are a lot of franchises I’d love to see Joss tackle some day (Star Trek being at the top of the list), but I admit I can’t really see him in charge of Terminator…
If Whedon made a new Terminator movie, I would actually go to it, like, the day it came out. I was tempted to see Salvation, but not enough to actually go to the theatre.
We can call Joss the Whedonator
Buffy the Terminator Slayer!
Eliza Dushku:The Dollhouse Chronicles!
Would there be any space cowboys in it?
Only if they were recording Christmas songs with Lady GaGa
(If you don’t get it, look it up)