Anthony Stewart Head Slams New Buffy Movie

[Buffy Summers]

There has to be a way to stop them! Their Joss's creation not theirs.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. The Kuzui's have been there since the very beginning, and they have the rights. If they want to make a movie and they can get the money, they can make it.

I personally have low expectations for this one, but I HOPE I'm pleasantly surprised. Joss wasn't around for every single episode of Buffy and Angel, he didn't write every one - the same way Russell Davies doesn't write every single episode of Doctor Who. I'm hoping this will be like the Halloween remake, which I enjoyed once I started viewing it not as a remake but as a seperate entity.

And if people cannot disagree with each other and argue their points and let others argue theirs without World War 3 ensuing, I am going to close this thread.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. The Kuzui's have been there since the very beginning, and they have the rights. If they want to make a movie and they can get the money, they can make it.

There's still the question of trademarks... all the trademarks to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" are registered to Fox. If they really want to, Fox can probably send this project to litigation hell, like they did with "Watchmen." You can bet that fact isn't lost on any of the potential studios out there that might consider picking this project up.

It's already highly questionable whether the Buffy brand is strong enough to make a profitable theatrical movie... certainly nobody in Hollywood has thought so in the past 6 years. The fact that nobody associated with Buffy's success is going to be a part of this movie doesn't make it any more likely to succeed, and the potential Fox lawsuit hanging over it won't help a lot either.

And this movie isn't scheduled to come out until 2012, even without any legal entanglements. Anybody think the sparkly vampire fad will still be hot by that time?

I personally have low expectations for this one, but I HOPE I'm pleasantly surprised. Joss wasn't around for every single episode of Buffy and Angel, he didn't write every one - the same way Russell Davies doesn't write every single episode of Doctor Who. I'm hoping this will be like the Halloween remake, which I enjoyed once I started viewing it not as a remake but as a seperate entity.

Joss didn't personally write every episode, but he did oversee the whole thing. Even when he was at his most hands-off, the story was still following his path. There was never a story in there that he didn't approve, even if they didn't all turn out exactly the way he might have liked. Not every story was his, but Buffy's story was (and is) his.

Buffy was a success because all the creative stars aligned just right under just the right people... Whedon & Co. took a goofy-sounding concept and caught lightning in a bottle. At heart, that was because it had a brilliant storyteller giving us the tale of a character he created and loved.

That's not something the corporate suits are going to be able to buy for this movie.

 

[Buffy Summers]

Is Fox really not involved? Where did you read about potential lawsuits?

The other thing the anti-movie people need to consider, is that if this fails we will NEVER see any Buffy movie in the future with Joss.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

BillyIdolWannaB agrees: Maybe the 'no interest in 6 years' thing is that they not interested in either Joss's work or the Buffy name? Do kuzuis have their own production company? Is that how they can get it done?

They weren't interested in the Buffy name, because it was a cult TV show with an audience of 5-6 million that had no proven potential to fill up thousands of theaters. Plus, the star (SMG) wasn't interested, which would have made it pretty pointless.

The Kuzuis have a production company, but they don't have the resources to get a movie made without partnering with bigger production companies. For the 1992 movie they partnered with Sandollar Entertainment, which was run by Gail Berman (future president of Fox and Paramount) and partly owned by Dolly Parton. For this move it's Vertigo Entertainment, which specializes in taking Japanese movies (mostly horror movies) and re-making them for the American market. They produced or co-produced The Grudge, The Departed, The Strangers, Quarantine, Possession. But in order to get a movie made, they have to sell it to one of the studios. (Fox, Warner Bros., Universal etc.)

 

[charmingslayer]

So your saying it might go straight to dvd? without Fox, Warner Bros., Universal etc?

 

[BillyidolwannaB]

This is quite confusing. So the Kuzuis hire someone to write this, then they sell it to a major production company. And it sounds from what i've read on the net this will happen. If they can get it done why not Joss?
I'm not complaining about Joss here, just wondering. Surely if THEY can get someone interested HE should be able to?
Anyway, i'd watch a new Kuzui B movie and a new Joss B movie, so.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

Is Fox really not involved? Where did you read about potential lawsuits?

Fox has no involvement at all at this point. Vertigo could try to sell them on the project. If Fox agreed to buy it, it would be because they want to keep sole control of the Buffy brand, and because they think they can make it profitable now.

The benefit to that, of course, would be that they'd almost certainly offer Joss creative control. They've always deferred to him in all Buffy-related projects.

The potential lawsuit would stem from the fact that Fox owns all the trademarks to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." If someone else tried to make a movie under that title Fox would have to defend their trademarks in court, or lose the rights to them. Fox is not going to want someone running a Buffy franchise in competition with their own.

Fox might or might not have a winning case ultimately, but fighting it would be tremendously expensive for Vertigo to fight and might push the project back years.

At a recent talk (Wesleyan, I think?) Joss mentioned that Fox might be looking for a piece of the pie like they did with "Watchmen." You can bet every studio in Hollywood took notice when he said that. (Fox was able to successfully sue Warner Bros. for partial ownership of the "Watchmen" film after it was already made... the result being that Fox made a bunch of money off it with no investment, and WB lost their shirts.)

The other thing the anti-movie people need to consider, is that if this fails we will NEVER see any Buffy movie in the future with Joss.

We never will if it succeeds, either. If it's a hit it becomes the New Hotness, the new franchise, without a Joss or a Scooby in sight.

 

[Buffy Summers]

Well, I guess my question is, are you speculating that Fox hasn't made any deals yet or do you have a source?

They can make the film without one of the major studios, but they will need someone to distribute it.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

Well, I guess my question is, are you speculating that Fox hasn't made any deals yet or do you have a source?

Speculating, based on what I know about the legal situation and Joss's comment.

There have been no reports yet of the producers making deals with any studio, or even which ones they've approached yet (if any).

It would surprise me a great deal if Fox simply let this go without challenge, but anything that's happening now will be happening behind closed doors, and nobody involved will be allowed to say anything publicly.

 

[fersurejacobx]

I'll have to say that I couldn't agree with Head more... the first movie was treacherous and the only good thing that came out of it was the series which is the reason that most people even enjoy Buffy the Vampire slayer. If the original cast of the series doesn't want to do the film and/or if Joss doesn't want to be a part of it, I think they should let it go. With rumours of Megan Fox being cast as Buffy, I think most of us can agree that it sounds aweful.


On a different tangent, a couple weeks ago I read somewhere (and for the life of me I can't remember where) that someone approached Joss about the possibility of a movie and he was all for it, even opting to trash his idea from the Season 8 comics, and the cast members were willing to reprise their roles if Joss wrote it, including Sarah Michelle Gellar. Now, this is contradictory to what we've heard of the movie thus far, but I just thought I'd share what I read.

 

[Rayne]

On a different tangent, a couple weeks ago I read somewhere (and for the life of me I can't remember where) that someone approached Joss about the possibility of a movie and he was all for it, even opting to trash his idea from the Season 8 comics, and the cast members were willing to reprise their roles if Joss wrote it, including Sarah Michelle Gellar. Now, this is contradictory to what we've heard of the movie thus far, but I just thought I'd share what I read.

Wow...I wish you could remember where you found this. I'll do a search and see if I can find anything. That would be simply wonderful if it's true!

 

[white avenger]

There was a thread here a few months ago about Joss stating that if he were going to make a new "Buffy" movie, he wouldn't hesitate to scrap all of Season 8 and After The Fall if he came up with or were offered a better story line. It got quite a few people upset here, but nowhere near as many as this new Buffy movie proposal has,

 

[Rayne]

I seriously need to read the comics. I didn't even know about them for a long time. They sound like a good read. I doubt I would be upset if they scrapped them as I would see them as an entirely different entity from that which the actors starred in. I suppose I can see why people would get so crazed though. I need to go search for that thread.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

There was a thread here a few months ago about Joss stating that if he were going to make a new "Buffy" movie, he wouldn't hesitate to scrap all of Season 8 and After The Fall if he came up with or were offered a better story line. It got quite a few people upset here, but nowhere near as many as this new Buffy movie proposal has,

That was at last year's PaleyFest. Since then, Joss has clarified that he said that knowing that no movie (with that cast) was ever likely to happen, that the comic really does follow his intended post-"Chosen" storyline, and that he'd have saved the story for a movie if there was any chance of one happening.

 

[Buffy Summers]

Speculating, based on what I know about the legal situation and Joss's comment.

There have been no reports yet of the producers making deals with any studio, or even which ones they've approached yet (if any).

It would surprise me a great deal if Fox simply let this go without challenge, but anything that's happening now will be happening behind closed doors, and nobody involved will be allowed to say anything publicly.

Okay, well, then I think you're inflaming the situation a bit prematurely. There's nothing to suggest that Fox and the Kuzuis are not in negotiation or haven't already come to a rights agreement.

🙂

 

[charmingslayer]

Sounds like Joss doesn't mind at all from what i've read he even wishes them luck which I find really weird.

 

[Buff4ever]

Joss did a fantastic job with the television series, don't get me wrong. Even if this film outdoes the original, it still isn't touching the series - quality wise. However, it's a bit ignorant for someone to deem a film unworthy before even seeing it, let alone acknowledging the unborn plot. Because Joss Whedon (the creator) has no attachment doesn't mean the film is going to suck, or isn't worth seeing. Who's to say the creators won't do Buffy justice? How can anyone accurately know this? The idea that the movie will suck because the original creator isn't involved is ludicrous and plainly contradicted by modern exemplars. There have been plenty of wonderful reincarnations of television greatness fashioned by producers who weren't even so much as [though of] when the acclaimed masterpiece lit the screen. "Batman: Dark Knight", "Imitation of Life", "Charlie's Angels", and much more to name a few. I will see the movie because A) It's Buffy - anything Buffy-related is worthy of my time. B) The makers obviously see room for improvement, and since Joss and no movie with the cast is likely to happen, why not?

If the movie does well, it could possibly set the stage for future Buffy projects, where the resident-actors finally smell the coffee and realize that Buffy is their only hope for REAL success.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

Not going to keep repeating the same arguments over and over again.

I seem to be in the minority when I say that the only real Buffy comes from Joss. So be it. Whenever I find myself in the majority I start to worry.

It seems we've reached the point where branding is more important than quality, with everyone saying they're going to see this movie just because it says "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on the poster. So, whether it's a good movie or a bad one, it's going to be successful. I guess that's just the way it works now that all the world's stories have already been told.

There's no point in railing about how the world isn't the way I want it to be. I just hope that when the time comes, there's a forum somewhere where we fans of Joss's Buffy can talk about it without having to wade through thread after thread about how awesome this new one is.

I've got my Buffy, thanks. There's plenty of life left in her, and I'm not in the market for a new one.

 

[Buffy Summers]

See, but you're making an assumption on the quality of the new movie without even seeing any part of it. You don't KNOW whether the quality is low or not because it hasn't even been cast or even written yet.

And it would be great if you could stop implying that everyone who might see the movie is not a real fan because of it. Let people make their own decision.

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

I think another issue may be that a Cheerleader turned Vampire Hunter is a stupid silly idea. That's not the reason the show has a following, it has a following because the concept was executed extremely well with a great ensemble cast.

The only thing the movie will have in common with the show is that stupid concept. No Willow, Xander, Giles, Spike, Angel, etc. I've heard they can't even use Joyce, since Joss lays claim to her.

I'm going to watch it, but I'm going in knowing that if it is good, it'll be for completely different reasons. It'll be like the Star Trek thing, I get the impression that the hardcore fans like it far less if they went in with expectations. I liked that movie, maybe because I'm not a fan of the series.