Buffy The Vampire Slayer Cast React To Charisma Carpenter’s Joss Whedon Misconduct Allegations
On Wednesday, Charisma Carpenter opened up about her 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and 'Angel' boss' allegedly "toxic" and "hostile" misconduct.
Several cast members of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, including Sarah Michelle Gellar and Michelle Trachtenberg, have gone to bat for Charisma Carpenter amid her allegations of misconduct against the series creator, Joss Whedon, on the set of Buffy, and the spin-off Angel.
On Wednesday (Feb 10), Carpenter, 50, posted a lengthy statement on Twitter alleging that Whedon, 56, “abused his power” during the series which ran from 1997 and 2003.
“Like his ongoing, passive-aggressive threats to fire me, which wreaks havoc on a young actor’s self-esteem. And callously calling me ‘fat’ to colleagues when I was four months pregnant, weighing 126 lbs (58kg),” wrote Carpenter, who played Cordelia Chase on Buffy and Angel.
“He was mean and biting, disparaging about others openly, and often played favorites, putting people against one another to compete and vie for his attention and approval. He called me in for a sit-down meeting to interrogate and berate me regarding a rosary tattoo I got to help me feel more spiritually grounded in an increasingly volatile work climate that affected me physically.”
Charisma also claimed that Whedon “refused multiple calls from my agents making it impossible to connect with him to tell him the news that I was pregnant.” When she did, Whedon requested a meeting and then allegedly “asked me if I was ‘going to keep it’ and manipulatively weaponized my womanhood and faith against me.”
Carpenter’s pregnancy was incorporated into the show, but after the actor gave birth, she said she was fired. Post-Angel, she felt “powerless and alone,” especially as the “primary breadwinner” for her family. “Unfortunately, all this was happening during one of the most wonderful time[s] in new motherhood,” she explained. “All that promise and joy sucked right out. And Joss was the vampire.”
Fisher’s allegations in July led to an investigation by WarnerMedia, which Carpenter said she was part of.
Fisher, who played Cyborg in the DC movie, expressed support for Carpenter on Twitter.
“Charisma Carpenter is one of the bravest people I know," he wrote. "I am forever grateful for her courage and for her lending her voice to the Justice League investigation. Read her truth. Share her truth."