POP CULTURE REPORT: There's A Reason It's Called Show BUSINESS
They may all be adults playing make-believe, but creatives who cause trouble on-set must remember they're really in workplaces
Editor's Note: If you consider The Washington Current as a newspaper of sorts, think of “The Pop Culture Report” as our Arts & Entertainment section. Enjoy!
I've had a circle of friends in science fiction and fantasy fandom who, shall we shall we say, would become incredibly attached to various TV series.
And inevitably, despite the devotion of my friends — and no doubt a panoply of scifi geeks like us — many of these series just wouldn't make it.
And my friends would holler and complain and gnash their teeth at the unfairness of it all. They would lament characters they've come to love, fuss over such a finely drawn universe; they might even grouse over a series which ended on a wild cliffhanger which now will go forever unresolved.
There were a few of us, however, with a presence of mind to remain a bit more detached when these TV series would meet an untimely end.
We would have a saying that would put it all in perspective: “There's a reason that it's called show business.”
In other words, we had to remind our fellow fans that as much as these TV series might be a labor of love on some level, at the end of the day they have to turn a profit and earn their keep.
No studio or network is going to keep any TV show on the air just for kicks.
Now, it seems like it's time that we have to take our favorite pithy maxim — “There's a reason that it's called show business,” — and turn the tables with it.
Instead of reminding fans of that fact, it seems past time that, unfortunately, a growing number of the creative professionals in front of — and behind — the scenes must be reminded of the same thing.
Since the advent of the #MeToo movement, what began as a trickle now seems like a torrent of so-called professionals mistreating their co-stars or castmembers.
Take, for starters, longtime CBS TV star Michael Weatherly. First on his original series, NCIS, Weatherly reportedly had the regular habit of pulling his pants off on-set. After he moved on to his starring vehicle, Bull, Weatherly kicked it up to full-on sexual harassment and rape jokes with co-star Eliza Dushku — with that behavior resulting in a $9.5 million payout to Dushku.
Weatherly, sadly, isn't an isolated case.
More recently, we've come to learn about separate sexual harassment allegations against Doctor Who alumni John Barrowman and Noel Clarke.
And then there's Joss Whedon, whose allegedly repeated and ongoing poor professional behavior is so abysmal that he could be one of the monsters in one of his on-screen creations.
What began as an allegation of abusive behavior made by actor Ray Fisher against Whedon from the set of the Justice League movie ended up opening the floodgates of all manner of allegations against the producer and director from those who worked on his seminal series Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel.
Whedon was accused of everything from fat-shaming and sexual harassment, to good old-fashioned assault and … eew, implied child molestation of actress Michelle Trachtenberg when she was playing Buffy's little sister Dawn.
What allows such rampant misbehavior to flourish on these sets?
The answer is simple, really.
As much as actors, directors, writers and such wrap what they do in an air of creative art and artistry — it's really a bunch of grownups playing make-believe.
That sort of inherently playful atmosphere can lead to folks on both sides of the camera being lulled into a sense of lowered inhibitions.
And, for some, that can go to their head and lead to poor choices and not only poor — but even in some cases, borderline sociopathic behavior.
Think about it. Would you remove your pants in the middle of your office? Probably not.
And if you became pregnant, and your boss came to you and asked, “Are you keeping it?” as Charisma Carpenter is alleging Whedon did on the set of their series Angel, would you just take it?
Here's the thing: These TV and movie sets aren't just places where Hollywood “magic” happens — and despite the constant ambiance of make-believe — these are workplaces for professional men and women.
That goes from the actors in the cast and the writers, producers, and directors who call the shots — down to the grips, camera crews, lighting and sound techs.
Everyone needs to remember that “There's a reason that it's called show business.”
And remember that before behavior gets out of hand.