Pictured: Richard Donner and Lauren Shuler Donner
Lauren Shuler Donner produced every X-Men movie — including Deadpool, which she insisted had to be “violent, and outrageous, and funny” — as well as producing TV shows The Gifted and Legion. In a wide-ranging interview with Rotten Tomatoes, she touches on the possibility of an Avengers/X-Men crossover (saying “Sure, why not?”) and didn’t try to change the subject when asked about that X-Men director who was accused of sexual misconduct. Er, we mean, both of those X-Men directors accused of sexual misconduct, Bryan Singer and Brett Ratner.
Shuler Donner voiced support for Ellen Page, who spoke about being insulted and outed by Ratner during filming of 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand. “I back her up 100 percent,” Shuler Donner said. “Absolutely. He’s horrible. I’m aware he’s very demeaning to women, extremely demeaning to women, myself included. Yes, I was aware. Anybody that’s female, he’s demeaning.” She continued to speak plainly when asked about Bryan Singer, whose executive producer credit has been removed from Legion.
“Listen, I love Bryan, but Bryan has a lot of demons. Bryan has some problems, and Bryan needs to take care of his personal problems. That’s all I can say.”
As for an abuse accusation against Deadpool‘s T.J. Miller, Shuler Donner said he won’t be replaced in Deadpool 2 (which is already in its final edit), and she doesn’t know what Disney’s decision will be regarding his casting in future movies.
Thankfully, the interview wasn’t entirely about depressing news. Shuler Donner expressed excitement about Disney’s Fox buyout, praising Disney CEO Bob Iger, Marvel head Kevin Feige, and Disney chair Alan Horn. When speaking about Feige, she hinted at the possibility of the X-Men team working with Marvel in a future movie. “Kevin Feige was my intern and assistant and then my associate producer on the first X-Men. Kevin and I started the X-Men together, so for me if we work with Kevin, I’m happy.”
(Via Rotten Tomatoes)
