Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing

[Chris3123]

Coming to theaters next year:

The Avengers writer-director’s film adaptation of the comedic Shakespeare classic Much Ado About Nothing has been slated for a June 7, 2013 joint theatrical release by Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions, according to a press release Thursday.

Link

And what would a proper Joss Whedon production be without some familiar faces? Here are the members of the cast who have had significant roles in his previous works:

Amy Acker (Angel, Dollhouse) as Beatrice
Alexis Denisof (Buffy/Angel, Dollhouse, The Avengers) as Benedick
Nathan Fillion (Firefly/Serenity, Buffy, Dr. Horrible) as Dogberry
Clark Gregg (The Avengers) as Leonato
Fran Kranz (Dollhouse, Cabin in the Woods) as Claudio
Tom Lenk (Buffy, Cabin in the Woods) as Verges
Sean Maher (Firefly/Serenity) as Don John
Reed Diamond (Dollhouse) as Don Pedro

Those familiar with both Much Ado... and Angel may notice a significance to the casting of the Beatrice and Benedick roles. To illustrate, an image from the movie:



I wouldn't normally care about a Shakespeare adaptation, but I'm definitely going to see this.

[Wereghost]

It seems to be taking a while to get released, given that he went into it pretty much straight from The Avengers. It ought to be doing some business on DVD / Blu-ray / digital home release by now.

Hope it's good.

[Captain Craig]

I'm likely to check it out but summer seems an odd slot for it really, even as counter programming.

I would've thought a Feb type release might give it more exposure. It's just going to be lost, most likely, among summer films. Of course summer always needs, or we want, a Moonrise Kingdom to find an audience.

[cardinal biggles]

I've been waiting to see this for over a year, ever since Nathan Fillion tweeted about it. July seems like forever, but I'm sure it'll be worth the wait. I'm a huge fan of the 1993 Branagh version of Much Ado, so I'll be interested to see what an American director and cast bring to the table.

[st.barthgirl]

So, My Rock must have been in Full Shadow: JW did Avengers?

The Only ones Missing from Much Ado are SMG and Doogie... But i think Doogie might've been on Vacay with the Kids and Elton...

i LOVED the KB Version. Even with Keanu. JW's is a Must-See... i wonder if it's Musical, Silent, or Satire?

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Is Joss keeping the actual Shakespearean dialogue?

[PsychoPere]

He did, yes. Joss and some of his "regulars" (writers and cast both) have been doing Shakespeare readings at his house for over a decade prior to deciding to film this adaptation.

[Admiral_Young]

He didn't go into it "straight from Avengers" he actually filmed this over a two week period while still filming "Avengers" as was originally reported when news of this first came out in the summer time. I've been very much looking forward to this, as it's my favourite work of Shakespeare.

[ManOnTheWave]

Been looking forward to this since Teh Whedon announced it last year. It's frustrating to have to wait another seven months to see this thing released, particularly since it will probably not hit Local art house theatres until several months after its official release if it shows up at all (just seems to be the way many of these smaller films play out, at least locally.) Nevertheless, I'm quite looking forward to this one because of the director, the cast, and WTF, it's a Shakespeare movie.

[st.barthgirl]

it's one of my favorites, too...

Funny how Shakespeare and Trek go Hand In Hand...

i've been reading a bit about the question of Shakespeare's identity lately... but i'm new to the debate. i think Edward de Vere is a likely candidate... if we ever identified him as a woman, i wouldn't be surprised: it's in the Name: Spear=Male Distaff= Female... 'shaking' the 'Spear" could be a hint that the author was shrugging off the burden of Male dominance? Just a Thought... Fun Mystery.

Any opinions on who Shakespeare was?

[Wereghost]

Admiral_Young wrote:

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He didn't go into it "straight from Avengers" he actually filmed this over a two week period while still filming "Avengers" as was originally reported when news of this first came out in the summer time.

Not according to IMDb or any other sources I've encountered, which agree that it shot after principal photography on the Avengers movie had ended.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

PsychoPere wrote:

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He did, yes. Joss and some of his "regulars" (writers and cast both) have been doing Shakespeare readings at his house for over a decade prior to deciding to film this adaptation.

That's cool. I totally love it when Shakespeare's works are filmed and put in a modern setting, but the dialogue is kept intact (for instance, Romeo + Juliet set in present day California, Hamlet in New York City, and - assuming the sumbitch ever makes it out of development hell - Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen's The Merchant of Vegas).

[PsychoPere]

Wereghost wrote:

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Not according to IMDb or any other sources I've encountered, which agree that it shot after principal photography on the Avengers movie had ended.

Yeah, it was a twelve-day period (a week off from Marvel, plus two weekends) after principal photography wrapped on Avengers but prior to post-production. So, Much Ado was put together while work on Avengers was underway but after filming had stopped.

[Forbin]

Well, Shakespeare in modern settings disturbs me (I REALLY like period costume pieces!), but Shakespeare is Shakespeare, and Joss is Joss, so I'm sure it'll be great.

[Warp Coil]

I've been wondering when this would ever see the light of day. I figured that it would eventually end up online or on DVD, but I'm glad that it's getting a theatrical release. I'm pretty sure the budget on this thing was miniscule, so almost all the money it makes in the theaters would be profit.