“Joss has a history of being casually cruel,” Carpenter said in tweets on Wednesday.
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Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Charisma Carpenter, who played Cordelia Chase in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, accused creator Joss Whedon of being abusive to her on the sets of iconic TV shows, specifically while she was pregnant.
The actor tweeted a statement on Wednesday, claiming that Whedon “abused his power on several occasions” and created a “hostile and toxic work environment” while working with him on Buffy and Angel.
Whedon representatives did not respond to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News.
She claimed that Whedon had called her “fat” for colleagues when she was 4 months pregnant, asked if she “was going to be with him” and fired her after giving birth.
“Joss has a history of being casually cruel,” said Carpenter. “Although he found his misconduct amusing, it only served to heighten my performance anxiety, weaken me and distance myself from my colleagues.”
She said the “disturbing incidents” triggered a “chronic physical condition” that she still has. She said she dealt with it in isolation and “sometimes, destructively”.
Carpenter’s complex and nuanced role as Cordelia in three seasons of Buffy and four of Angel made her a fan favorite. The death of your character in Angel was widely criticized by fans of teen dramas.
Following Carpenter’s allegations, she Buffy Co-star Sarah Michelle Gellar posted a statement on Instagram, saying, “While I’m proud to have my name associated with Buffy Summers, I don’t want to be associated with the name Joss Whedon forever.”
Gellar said he would not make any further statements at this point, adding: “I am with all survivors of abuse and I am proud of them for speaking out.”
In his statement on Wednesday, Carpenter claimed that Whedon made “continuous and passive-aggressive threats of fire [her]. “
When she was 4 months pregnant, she noted, he called her “fat” for colleagues, while she weighed 56 pounds. On a date with her, she added, he scolded and discredited her for a rosary tattoo that she started to feel “spiritually grounded”.
She said Whedon intentionally declined several calls from her agents to inform him of her pregnancy. When he found out, he asked her in a closed-door meeting if she “would keep him,” said Carpenter.
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“He started attacking my character, mocking my religious beliefs, accusing me of sabotaging the show and then fired me unceremoniously the following season, as soon as I gave birth,” she said.
Carpenter said he endured the abuse just because he wanted to support his future son as the main breadwinner for his family.
She said these incidents occurred during what was supposed to be one of the “most wonderful” moments as a new mother.
“All that promise and joy has been sucked in,” she said. “And Joss was the vampire.”
Carpenter’s allegations come a month after Warner Media completed an investigation into Whedon’s behavior on September Justice League.
The investigation was initiated by actor Ray Fisher allegations last July that the “treatment on the Whedon set of the cast and crew Justice League it was rude, abusive, unprofessional and completely unacceptable. “
Warner Media said “corrective measures” were taken after the investigation, but the company did not provide details. Fisher was recently fired as Cyborg from the upcoming DC film THE Flash.
Carpenter said he participated in the investigation that considers “Ray a person of integrity who is telling the truth”. She said he fired from The Flash it was the “last straw”.
“My hope now, about finally presenting these experiences, is to create space for the healing of others who I know have experienced similar abuses of power in a series,” she said.