Details Revealed on Joss Whedon's Cabin in the Woods

July 7, 2008
Source: MTV
by Alex Billington

Where oh where hath Joss Whedon gone? Being a huge Firefly fan myself, I'm anxious to see Whedon return in some form, even as a producer or writer. Whedon is currently working on a new TV series titled "Dollhouse", but we've finally got some news from him on a film project as well! Although I've never heard of it until now, Joss has been working on a project titled Cabin in the Woods, which sounds like some sort of horror-esque drama and romance movie all packed into one (as far as I can tell). MTV recently caught up with Whedon and Cabin in the Woods co-writer Drew Goddard, who also wrote the Cloverfield screenplay, and finally got some details out of them. The film is currently only in pre-production, but it sounds like it might come together soon enough.

So what is Cabin in the Woods? Goddard explains that "there's a reason the title is so straightforward… It's its own sub-genre, the cabin in the woods, and this is sort of our take on it. It's fresh and new." From that description, I'm getting eerie Joss Whedon re-imaginings of Evil Dead. That is the quintessential "cabin in the woods" movie, right? Goddard goes on to tease even more about the film while still explaining nothing. "It's genius, it's funny. It's got a harder and darker edge, but it's also got classic Whedon qualities. It'll rip your heart out and be heartfelt at the same time." Apparently Whedon isn't necessarily directing, but has been writing it with Goddard and will be producing the film.

Joss himself also chimes in on the film, but only explains how tough it is handling double duty as both the writer and the producer. "Writing is like a cave… You have to go very far down, and you have to have time to get down there and come back up. But producing, that means you're involved with everything. Right now, that has more to do with very preliminary stuff, budgeting and whatnot, but it's still another thing on the list that keeps you having enough time to get into your artistic head." And although we still don't have a very clear idea on what the heck Cabin in the Woods is all about, Goddard puts a final confusing yet exciting cap on it all. "[Joss] is a genre all to himself. He's comedy, horror, drama, all at once, and you'll never be able to classify it as one thing. What do you call it? At the end of the day, it's Joss."

Whedon also confirmed that his other horror fantasy project titled Goners has been backburnered by Universal, although he says he "still [has] hope for it." You can also read about updates on his TV show "Dollhouse" and the Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog webisodes over at MTV as well. Although I still don't know what Cabin in the Woods really is, I guess I'll say I'm excited for it. To be honest, Whedon is a double-edged sword for me. I love Firefly to death, but hate Buffy. So as long as this stays in the Firefly realm, I'll be keeping my eye on it. And if we actually figure out what it is, we'll be sure to update you. Hopefully this doesn't get caught up in production hell either, as it seems Whedon has a curse.

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