In an absurd and surprising turn of events, director James Gunn has been fired by Disney over offensive tweets that resurfaced from almost a decade ago. James directed the first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies and was set to director the third instalment, due for release in 2020. He is popular in the fan community for his online presence and deep involvement in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As such this news comes as a bit of a shocker.
Gunn’s troubles began when he criticized American president Donald Trump in a series of tweets. This caught the attention of Mike Cernovich, a right wing figure and conspiracy theorist. Cernovich along with his followers digged out old tweets from the director joking about child abuse and accused him of being a pedophile.
Cernovich seemed to implicate Gunn in a vast ring of Hollywood sex offenders. While there is no way to verify Cernovich’s allegations, Disney was quick to issue a statement denouncing Gunn and ending their association with the director.
The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James’ Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio’s values, and we have severed our business relationship with him.Alan Horn, Chairman, Disney
In response, Gunn shared a statement saying that he was apologetic about the jokes and that he “accepted the business decisions made today.”
My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since — not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don’t reflect the person I am today or have been for some time.James Gunn
In light of the firing, many people have come to Gunn’s defense. A major criticism of Disney’s handling of the issue has been that they could not have been unaware of the director’s tweets and sense of humour when they signed him back in 2012. It has also been pointed out that Gunn’s directorial work before GOTG reflected his macabre tastes, which is why he was considered an inspired choice by Marvel to helm the irreverent series in the first place.
The filmmaker had also apologized for the controversial tweets earlier, on at least two occasions. On the other hand Cernovich is infamous for peddling misogynist and extremist views on Twitter. That Disney would listen to such a controversial figure doesn’t make the company look good.
GOTG star Dave Bautista tweeted in support of his director saying, “I will have more to say but for right now all I will say is this..@JamesGunn is one of the most loving,caring,good natured people I have ever met. He’s gentle and kind and cares deeply for people and animals. He’s made mistakes. We all have. Im NOT ok with what’s happening to him”
Gunn had made a mark on the MCU with his singular vision driving the GOTG series. He also wrote all the scenes where the Guardians appeared in Avengers: Infinity War. The question now is, who will replace him?
Source: Hollywood Reporter
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