Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

[TheNorfolkDad]

Lets get the discussion started on this, regarding the news of the last 24 hours that James Gunn has been dropped by Marvel/Disney for some 10 year old tweets.

Taika Waititi for director? Will the movie be delayed?

 

[Dave A]

This is the current climate isn't it? Things you did 10 years ago will bite you on the behind if you're in the public eye. Obvioiusly the tweets were a bit dark but they were clearly attempts at sick humour. It's a witch hunt IMO, and it's inconsistent, people are being labelled as bad, evil, sick and twisted by people who criticise labelling people for things they tweeted, emailed, said, when the world was more tolerant of dark and even perverse humour.

Some of the jokes I used to come up with could have me labelled a very sick individual if they were taken out of context and shared with the wrong people, but context and intended audience are massive factors. The big difference though is I never tweeted anything that edgy even back then.

 

[TheNorfolkDad]

Supposedly what I heard there was a war of words between Gunn and another guy, so he’s dig up some “dirt” on Gunn via some old tweets. But yes that’s the world we now live in, I think more actors will jump to his defence as they’re contracted to play their roles but doesn’t change that Disney have distanced themselves from the director.

It’s such a shame because Vol. 1 & 2 were both incredible and I don’t think the MCU would be the same had Gunn not been involved.

 

[Dave A]

I've read it was a news outlet that dug up the old tweets because he's outspoken against Trump. Whatever the case, he ultimately made those tweets. A comment I read elsewhere on a story about this was quite good, it simply asked "if this firing was about the director of 50 shades freed would anyone care or want him re-hired?" I think that rings true, the fact is James Gunn has made two very popular superhero films that are part of a very popular superhero saga and that will make people more sypathetic to him, myself included.

I don't like the way dirt is being dug up on people from years ago, provided what they did is not illegal of course, and it's not just James Gunn who has been had this way, but he is ultimately responsable for what he tweeted no matter how I personally view it, and the political climate across the west dictatd that he would lose his job for it.

There is a big responsability to using social media, infact a huge responsability to using it. It's a really good lesson for everyone, what you post online can come back to haunt you years later. If you have any ambition, be careful what you post. I have a dark sense of humour, the boundaries I stick to online are far far lower than what I will say to a close friend.

 

[Dave A]

James Gunn is back in the directors seat for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/mar/15/james-gunn-guardians-of-the-galaxy-3

Nice to see the u-turn, firing someone for something they tweeted years before you ever hired them is a poor form IMO and I'm pleased with this decision.

 

[05XR8]

They had no choice. No one else was going to touch it. Good news.

 

[Populuxe]

According to the Hollywood Reporter, not only did Disney not interview anyone to replace Gunn as director, they almost immediately went into negotiations to rehire him once they realized how bad the backlash was. It's not as if Disney was unaware of the tweets in the first place. Going through someone's social media with a fine tooth comb is part of the due diligence in hiring someone for such a high profile job. But a few comicsgate agitators thought they could drum up enough fake outrage to get him fired, and it worked, at least temporarily. They even crowed about it on the various chans, claiming they got one SJW fired, and Hollywood was quaking in fear at their mighty power. Not only was it a shortlived victory, it actually backfired on them, because the firing gave Gunn the opportunity to take over the new Suicide Squad movie. So not only is he still making movies for Marvel, he's making movies for DC as well.

 

[TexRex]

comicsgate

Just...wow. "Today I learned..."

In April 2017, conservative magazine The Federalist tracked the Twitter accounts of all 30 freelance writers who had a comic released by Marvel that month, reporting that each had criticized President Donald Trump at least once, and none mentioned him positively. It attempted to identify the writers' religions, publishing a report that they included atheists, Jews, and a Muslim, but that none had spoken on Twitter about being Christian.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comicsgate

But a few comicsgate agitators thought they could drum up enough fake outrage to get him fired, and it worked, at least temporarily.

I've read it was a news outlet that dug up the old tweets because he's outspoken against Trump.

I'm given to understand the tweets were resurfaced by Mike "InfoWars" Cernovich--pusher of the debunked Pizzagate conspiracy theory that alleged hacked emails of Hillary Clinton campaign manager John Podesta contained "coded messages" (which is another way of saying "bull pucky") suggesting that he and other high-ranking members of the Democratic Party were involved in a child sex ring occupying numerous businesses in the U.S., including the basement of the Washington D.C. pizzeria Comet Ping Pong (an establishment that doesn't actually have a basement) and resulted in an individual firing rounds from a semi-automatic rifle in the restaurant in December of 2016 in an attempt to save the children inside and an arson attack on the restaurant in January of 2019--because Gunn spoke out against Trump.

Whatever the case, he ultimately made those tweets. A comment I read elsewhere on a story about this was quite good, it simply asked "if this firing was about the director of 50 shades freed would anyone care or want him re-hired?" I think that rings true, the fact is James Gunn has made two very popular superhero films that are part of a very popular superhero saga and that will make people more sypathetic to him, myself included.

I don't like the way dirt is being dug up on people from years ago, provided what they did is not illegal of course, and it's not just James Gunn who has been had this way, but he is ultimately responsable for what he tweeted no matter how I personally view it, and the political climate across the west dictatd that he would lose his job for it.

There is a big responsability to using social media, infact a huge responsability to using it. It's a really good lesson for everyone, what you post online can come back to haunt you years later. If you have any ambition, be careful what you post. I have a dark sense of humour, the boundaries I stick to online are far far lower than what I will say to a close friend.

To echo this somewhat, regardless of who is responsible, the lesson to be learned is that one ought not say stupid things (and I believe wholeheartedly that what he said was stupid, regardless of intent). If one absolutely must say stupid things, they ought not do so publicly and on a platform that keeps a record of remarks. Of course if one's mind slips, they certainly shouldn't subsequently speak out against an individual or group with a fanbase. And if one just can't help it, they'd better not rely on employment because it just might be put in peril.