Ray Fisher Accuses Director Joss Whedon Of Whitening Black Actor’s Skin Tone

Ray Fisher, who plays DC’s Cyborg, is going head-to-head with Justice League director Joss Whedon and Warner Bros., accusing them of racism and other on-set abuse. Both Whedon and the studio vehemently deny these claims, citing Fisher’s dislike of Cyborg’s character arc as the real root of his complaints.

“What set my soul on fire and forced me to speak out about Joss Whedon this summer was my becoming informed that Joss had ordered that the complexion of an actor of color be changed in post-production because he didn’t like the color of their skin tone,” Fisher told Forbes in an interview. “Prior to Justice League‘s reshoot process, blatantly racist conversations were had and entertained — on multiple occasions — by former and current top level executives at Warner Bros. Pictures. Decision-makers that participated in those racist conversations were Geoff Johns, Jon Berg and current Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich.”

Forbes also noted that the film’s actors of color had their parts reduced and even cut from its theatrical release. Whedon, however, countered that those decisions were not his, and retorted without mentioning Fisher by name.

“The individual who offered this statement acknowledged that this was just something that he had heard from someone else and accepted as truth, when in fact simple research would prove that it was false,” Whedon said. “As is standard on almost all films, there were numerous people involved with mixing the final product, including the editor, special effects person, composer, etc. with the senior colorist responsible for the final version’s tone, colors, and mood.”

Though Warner Brothers did not comment on Fisher’s latest remarks, they noted back in September on earlier complaints, detailing how Fisher had concerns about his role as Cyborg and DC Films President Walter Hamada but refused to participate in Warner Bros. subsequent investigation of the issue.

“Warner Bros. remains committed to accountability and to the well-being of every cast and crew member on each of its productions,” the statement reads. “It also remains committed to investigating any specific and credible allegation of misconduct, which thus far Mr. Fisher has failed to provide.”

Fisher shows no signs of stopping his campaign against the director and studio. He previously attacked Whedon for his “gross, abusive, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable” behavior, adding that Johns and Berg “enabled” such behavior. Now, he’s added that the Justice League set had “massive blowups, threats, coercion, taunting, unsafe work conditions, belittling, and gaslighting like you wouldn’t believe.” He also announced that he “would like to take a moment and forcefully retract” his previous support for Whedon.