Joss Whedon Out of Ideas, Won’t Direct That ‘Batgirl’ Movie

If the past few months have proven anything fairly conclusively, it's that Joss Whedon is all too human. Many geeks believed he was their savior, spending years languishing mostly in obscurity had made his fanboys and girls feel like he belonged to them. His first Avengers film was like his coming out party, an announcement to the world that this guy they all loved and adored could absolutely kill it when given the opportunity to move into the world of mega-budget filmmaking. He became the poster child for giving franchise films to guys who mostly worked in indies—Gareth Edwards, Colin Trevorrow, Josh Trank, James Gunn, Rian Johnson, etc—and soon everyone was on board the Joss Whedon express.

Then came Avengers: Age of Ultron. It clearly broke him, but didn't necessarily tarnish his reputation. Then his ex-wife took it upon herself to let everyone know that Whedon was a hypocrite for preaching feminist ideals in his works while acting a misogynist behind the scenes. This was followed by his participation in turning Justice League into an unwatchable mess after DC fired Zack Snyder, and it all began to make sense. Whedon was painfully human, not some geek god who was invulnerable to creative failure.

And now we've got further proof of his failing creative genius with the news that he'll no longer be writing and directing a Batgirl movie for WB & DC. Whedon released a statement to The Hollywood Reporter that says, in essence, that he's run out of ideas for the project and has decided to quit rather than being fired...

"Batgirl is such an exciting project, and Warners/DC such collaborative and supportive partners, that it took me months to realize I really didn't have a story," Whedon on Thursday told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement. Referring to DC president Geoff Johns and Warner Bros. Picture Group president Toby Emmerich, he added, "I'm grateful to Geoff and Toby and everyone who was so welcoming when I arrived, and so understanding when I…uh, is there a sexier word for 'failed'?"

Well, at least he's got a sense of humor about his complete and total lack of ideas. Can we put a timer on Whedon's career yet? I think we need to seriously consider it at this point. Be happy for what he's given us to this point, because I think it's gonna be all downhill from here.