How involved is Joss Whedon with the HBO series Buffy the Vampire Slayer). However, allegations accusing him of inappropriate, sexist, racist, and abusive behavior began to emerge several years ago and continue to come to light, derailing his career and placing an asterisk in front of his artistic legacy.
The Justice League. In of Fisher, Buffy the Vampire Slayer cast member Charisma Carpenter led a charge of Buffy alumni who came forward, painting a portrait of Whedon as a tyrannical bully, an egomaniac who consistently displayed unprofessional and even predatory behavior on set. In the wake of all the controversy, fans are left to reevaluate Whedon's canon, and it has raised questions if The Nevers may suffer as a result.
As casting for The Nevers was underway in 2019, Whedon was directing, serving as showrunner, and co-writing the scripts alongside Jane Espenson and Doug Petrie. In November 2020 came the news that Philippa Goslett would be replacing Whedon as showrunner.
The controversy surrounding Whedon and his subsequent exit from the show prompted HBO Max to take a rather novel approach with the series. Instead of releasing it as one season, it will instead be broken up into two six-episode blocks. Whedon's name is only attached to the first block, which makes sense. He wrote the pilot and directed the first three episodes but then exited the series. While he will always be attached in a way to the show as its creator, he otherwise has nothing to do with it creatively moving forward. At the moment, HBO has yet to announce a release date for Part Two.
Although HBO is attempting to distance itself from The Nevers' embroiled creator, Caroline Framke's review of the show for Variety asserts that it's impossible to separate the artist from his work, stating "Nevers bears so many of his narrative and stylistic hallmarks that it might as well be playing Whedon Bingo, for better and for worse." Even though Whedon may be long gone from the production, the show's success or failure will be attributed to him.