If It Was Written By Joss Whedon

Submission 17,723

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Okay, it's A LITTLE out of hand. MAYBE. Big whoop!

*mock Irish accent* Well, OIL be damned!!

liiis anyone else seeing the giant monkey?

I'm sorry, you said your name was Hannibal and you're a... Cannibal? Little on the nose, don't you think? That's like if your parents named you Dr. Eats People.

Don't worry, I'm fine. Just a little flesh wound. You know, like that scene from Monty Python? I always preferred Life of Brian but it's still good.

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About

If It Was Written By Joss Whedon refers to a series of parodies imagining popular films if their screenplay was written by writer and director Joss Whedon. The parodies send up Whedon's penchant for self-referential humor and are generally an expression of distaste for the director.

Origin

On May 10th, 2021, Twitter user @MeganBitchell^[1] posted a parody of Saw if it were written by Joss Whedon, showing Cary Elwes' character holding a saw and saying, "Uhh, isn't this a little on the nose?" The tweet gained over 1,600 retweets and 23,000 likes.

meg "tonya harding" bitchell @MeganBitchell Saw (2004) if it was written by Joss Whedon Uhh, isn't this a little on the nose? 1:17 AM - May 10, 2021 · Twitter for iPhone

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The tweet inspired a series of similar parodies using other films. User @beakerboy12^[2] posted a parody of Uncut Gems which gained over 60 retweets and 580 likes (shown below, left). User @AddisonWylie^[3] posted a parody of Open Water, gaining over 110 likes (shown below, right).

Getta load of this guy, geeking over a geode! ADDTEXT.COM

The jokes were celebrated by people who were not fans of Whedon for sending up the writer. User @bameballs^[4] tweeted, "'If it was written by Joss Whedon' is the Whedon bashing I've been waiting for. Sorry, not sorry. Fuck Whedon. And not in the good way" (shown below, left). @MeganBitchell^[5] reflected on the meme she started, writing, "I literally can’t stop retweeting the 'if it was written by Joss Whedon' posts I love them so much," gaining over 430 likes (shown below, right).