Why Every Whedon Fan Should Watch 'Much Ado About Nothing'

A rom-com romp with your favorite actors

Originally published on August 7, 2017

A few weeks ago I finally watched Joss Whedon’s interpretation of “Much Ado About Nothing”. Earlier in the week I had seen a Shakespeare play live and I guess I was in a Shakespeare mood, so I ordered it from the library. And I…loved it. It was a 2-hour romp, with many familiar actors spouting Shakespeare in a modern setting. I can’t believe it took me this long to get around to watching it, and by the time I was finished I had come to the conclusion that every Joss Whedon fan should watch “Much Ado About Nothing”.

The first reason that comes to mind, and the reason I was drawn to watch it in the first place, is the actors. There are actors from every single Whedon creation (that means Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible, Cabin in the Woods, and The Avengers) and it was very easy to watch them because I was familiar with them and the characters they portrayed. And I know people can get criticism whenever they fail to separate the actors from their characters, but picturing the actors as their characters made it more fun. Fred and Wesley get a happy ending (after their nearly Shakespearean drama over 3 seasons), Andrew still tries and fails to be cool, and Topher finally gets the girl. All the main actors were top-notch in their portrayals and who doesn’t like watching good actors do good work?

Another reason is just the pure enjoyment of the stories, both the play and the story behind the creation of the movie. The play is very funny in and of itself. I’ve heard it described at the first rom-com, and I completely agree. It had many of those things we now call tropes, like the best friends talking good things about the one person as the other one awkwardly hides. It’s not Shakespeare without a misunderstanding and a couple emotional speeches thrown in as well. I would recommend the subtitles, though, and maybe keep the Wikipedia page with character descriptions handy.

The story behind it is very sweet as well. Joss had wanted to do a movie of “Much Ado” ever since Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof played Beatrice and Benedick during one of his famous Sunday Shakespeare reads (the ones that evolved into the jam sessions that inspired “Once More, With Feeling”, but that’s another story), and when he had the chance to do it after The Avengers, he called up many friends and they filmed it in his house over 12 days. It looks like a bunch of friends hanging out, and it really is. Feeling the fun and respect throughout the movie made it all the more enjoyable.

Yes, I have only seen it once and maybe I have a little bit of bias on the subject, but to be honest I don’t care. I don’t have any criticisms because I didn’t see any. I enjoyed my experience watching “Much Ado” as a Whedon fan, and I think others will as well.