Joss Whedon and Johnathan Groff to Join 'Glee' Club
Joss Whedon, the writer and director behind one of the most beloved musical episodes in television history (“Once More, With Feeling,” Buffy the Vampire Slayer) will soon be lending his talents to direct an episode of the hit FOX series Glee.
Whedon is not only the man behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but he also created the Emmy-wining online musical sensation “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog,” starring Neil Patrick Harris. Whedon, the creator and director of Dollhouse, another FOX series, is set to direct one of the final nine first-season episodes FOX has ordered, since the show’s initial 13-episode run is already in the can. Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy told EW.com that he is “Thrilled [Whedon] will be loaning [Glee] his fantastic groundbreaking talent.” This will mark only the second time Whedon has ever directed an episode of a show he did not create; the first was an episode of The Office in 2007.
Whedon confirmed the news yesterday in a comment on Whedonesque.com:
“Hey kids and parents of kids and super-old, like ancestor-old-but-not-dead-yet-type people, just poking my oversized head in to say that the rumors are true... unless something very odd happens in the next few months, I will have the privilege of shooting an episode of GLEE. Why GLEE? Because I love cops, serial killers and gritty urban drama (I haven't seen the show yet). Why me? Because they're struggling and can't afford real directors…
“What can we expect from a 'Joss Whedon' epsiode of Glee? An episode of Glee. God willin' and the crik don't rise, a good one. A television director's job is, on some level, to be anonymous; to find the most compelling way to present a story without calling attention to himself. I had a wonderful time doing just that on The Office, and hope to again. A guest director can bring a huge amount to the party (we've had CRAZY talent on Dollhouse), but the party isn't his. I just want to work with good people on a show that I like enough to have watched every episode several times. (I lied: I HAVE watched the show. And seriously, when do the cops show up?)”
In other “Gleeful” new for the series, one of the Great White Way’s classic couples will be reunited when Broadway star Jonathan Groff joins his former Spring Awakening co-star Lea Michele, playing a potential love interest for Michele’s glee club queen bee Rachel. EW.com’s PopWatch reports that Tony-nominated Groff will appear in five or six episodes as the lead male singer of rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline. Murphy describes Groff’s character as “a male diva…a miva.”
Below, watch a video clip of Josh Whedon behind the scenes on Buffy:
-Alexa Trummer
Pictured: Joss Whedon (Getty Images)
Love it- such exciting news!
Posted by: Kimberly Arce | October 21, 2009 at 12:45 AM