Let’s recap.
Over the past few weeks, Age of Ultron stars Jeremy Renner and Chris Evans have called Black Widow a “slut” and a “whore” in an interview (and promptly issued apologies of varying sincerity); frustrations over gender bias in Marvel toys have resurfaced in light of the films’ release; and debate over director Joss Whedon’s depiction of women has raged online, particularly after the Twitter user suddenly deleted his account–so if it feels like Marvel’s depiction of women has suddenly become more contentious than ever, you’re probably right.
Thankfully, that debate isn’t just isolated to online geek niches; Age of Ultron stars Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo and Elizabeth Olsen are aware of fans’ investment in the franchises’ female characters, and have taken a decidedly un-Renner approach to addressing criticisms of Whedon and Marvel.
In an interview published in April by the LA Times, Johansson defended Ultron‘s female characters, saying
For so long, female superheroes have been mistreated, and I think women’s roles in general are often oversimplified and generic and saccharine […] I’ve finally been able to be a part of creating this character that is really multifaceted, and it’s fallen into what is generally a kind of male-dominated genre. To finally be sharing that with somebody else [Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch], and certainly with Lizzie, is a wonderful thing and a step in the right direction.
The actress also addressed Black Widow’s absence from Marvel merchandise:
I see it as a vestigial remnant of this kind of sexist sort of mindset. It’s certainly nice that people are noticing and talking about it, whereas before it would just kind of be like, ‘Well, you know, it’s long pajamas and they’re for boys, so of course it’s all the guys on them.’ It’s a conversation that people are having — ‘Where’s all the girls? We want more. We want to see females in this genre who are not the stick in the mud or the damsel in distress or the girlfriend waiting by the window. We want to see characters who reflect the environment that we’re a part of.’
[…] Regardless of gender, characters work when they have substance and when they are grounded in something that is visceral and true. I loved that she is sort of this reluctant superhero, that she is kind of a mutant in some ways, that she didn’t really choose this path for herself … and these are things that Joss just really absorbed. When I read ‘Avengers 2,’ I was really moved by the fact that he stuck with that.
Johansson’s co-star Elizabeth Olsen told the LA Times she hopes Scarlet Witch will serve as a powerful role model: “I can imagine myself during recess or before school on the playground being like, ‘I’m Scarlet Witch! Pow!’ To think of little girls being like, ‘I’m powerful and strong and tough!’ — that’s really cool.”
Mark Ruffalo, who joined other members of the Marvel Universe last week in calling for more Black Widow merch, used his Reddit AMA earlier today to address criticism of Natasha’s characterization in Age of Ultron [some spoilers for the movie to follow]:
I think it’s sad. Because I know how Joss feels about women, and I know that he’s made it a point to create strong female characters. I think part of the problem is that people are frustrated that they want to see more women, doing more things, in superhero movies, and because we don’t have as many women as we should yet, they’re very, very sensitive to every single storyline that comes up right now. But I think what’s beautiful about what Joss did with Black Widow – I don’t think he makes her any weaker, he just brings this idea of love to a superhero, and I think that’s beautiful.
If anything, Black Widow is much stronger than Banner. She protects him. She does her job, and basically they begin to have a relationship as friends, and I think it’s a misplaced anger. I think that what people might really be upset about is the fact that we need more superhuman women. The guys can do anything, they can have love affairs, they can be weak or strong and nobody raises an eyebrow. But when we do that with a woman, because there are so few storylines for women, we become hyper-critical of every single move that we make because there’s not much else to compare it to.
So I know Joss really well. I know what his values are. And I think it’s sad, because in a lot of ways, there haven’t been as many champions in this universe as Joss is and will continue to be. And I know it hurts him. I know it’s heavy on him. And the guy’s one of the sweetest, best guys, and I know him – as far as any man can be a champion for women, he is that.
So it’s been a little disheartening.
But I also see how much people love that aspect of it. There’s an equal amount of people who find the love interest between Banner and Black Widow to be a big standout. And it’s very satisfying to people. So it’s a movie. People are going to have their opinions. And that’s actually a great thing. The fact that this is a debate that’s coming out of this movie is probably a positive thing.
I just don’t think that people should get personal with Joss, because he really is – of anyone – an advocate for women. He’s a deeply committed feminist.
It’s important to draw a clear distinction between the belief that ‘criticism from feminists is a disheartening indicator of the need for better representation overall’ and ‘militant feminists drove Joss Whedon off Twitter’–that last statement buys into a patently untrue narrative that interferes with the well-being of individual women and harms public perception of feminism, and it’s not what Ruffalo is saying here.
But go ahead, Internet denizens intent on ‘getting revenge’ for Joss by blaming feminists–make Mark Ruffalo angry.
(via Michelle Buchman on Twitter and anonymous tipster)
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Published: May 6, 2015 06:00 pm