Lionsgate is Much Ado About Whedon!

Much ADo About Nothing – Joss Whedon

Although he’s spent most of the last couple of years immersing himself in the Marvel universe, Joss Whedon has somehow also found the time to take a swim in the lake of the bard. Whedon’s take on William Shakespeare’s ‘Much ADo About Nothing’ has been picked up by Lionsgate for distribution in the USA (no news on the UK distributor yet).

Much like the genius Dr. Horrible, ‘Much ADo’ has been cast from various alumni of his previous work. Amy Acker  (Angel, Dollhouse) and Alexis Denisof (Angel, How I Met Your Mother… and Mr. Alyson Hannigan) as Beatrice & Benedick (that’s the Ken Branagh & Emma Thompson parts for those that have seen the 1993 film). Fran Kranz (Dollhouse, The Cabin in the Woods) and newcomer Jillian Morgese play young lovers Claudio & Hero.

The rest of the cast is also a smorgasbord of Whedonesque talent! Nathan Fillion (Firefly, Castle), Clark Gregg (Coulson in Iron-Man, Avengers), Tom Lenk (Andrew in Buffy & Angel), Reed Diamond (Dollhouse, Homicide: Life on the Street), Ashley Johnson (Dollhouse, The Killing) & Riki Lindhome (Buffy) to name but a few!

‘Much ADo About Nothing’ is the first feature from Joss and wife Kai Cole’s new micro-studio ‘Bellwether’, set up for “the production of small, independent narratives for all media, embracing a DIY ethos.”  Taking just 12 days to shoot in black & white, the movie was shot on location… at Joss’s house in Santa Monica.

For those of you that don’t know your Shakespeare, ‘Much ADo About Nothing’ is a comedy about 2 pairs of lovers, Beatrice & Benedick and Claudio & Hero. B&B claim disdain for love and marriage, and each other, battling in a “merry war” of the sexes, unlike C&H who are ‘head over heels’ in love. As Joss Whedon puts it: “The text is to me a deconstruction of the idea of love, which is ironic, since the entire production is a love letter – to the text, to the cast, even to the house it’s shot in.”

As most of you know, GeekTown are massive fans of everything that Joss does, so we’re really looking to ‘Much ADo About Nothing’  getting a UK release!