>> good evening from los angeles. tonight a conversation with writer director joss whedon . last year he made box office history. his movie the avengers earned one and a half billion dollars at the box office. his latest is a modern-day retelling of much to about nothing. ." of "much ado about nothing

>> there is a saying that dr. king had that said there is always the right time to do the right thing. i try to live my life every day by doing the right thing. we know that we are only halfway to completely eliminating hunger and we have work to do. walmart committed $2 billion to fighting hunger in the u.s. as we work together, we can stamp hunger out. >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. -- >> for more information on today's show, visit tavis smiley at pbs.org. >>vis: hi, i'm tavis smiley. imagine you have just direct did marvelbased on

characters and you have just agreed to make the sequel. here is joss whedon. you made it in your own th backyard in 12 days, and this is what you come up with. >> are you sure benedict loves entirely?o >> did they bid you tell her of it? >> they did not, but i persuaded them if they love benedict. >> why did you so? does not the gentleman deserves as full of bad -- a be?

womanure never framed a of as proud of stuff as beatrice. >> then kingsley came through, and when he does it is through a to go conversation without shakespeare making a cameo, so i will ask you. what is it about shakespeare? language, and it is how personally i relate to it. with it even before i could understand it. i love the poetry, but the more i studied it, the more i go, this is about me.

is 400kes me that it years since he wrote it, and the jokes still work. hiss: what do you make that writing is such you could do a modern-day version of it? you have got cell phones and security cameras. how does shakespeare play in a contemporary setting? for me it was a question of making it contemporary because i wanted it to be relatable and i could not afford costumes. it works because it is love, passion, jealousy. what are we expected to be?

who are we? it does not matter if somebody or scrollingletter down. it still affects them emotionally. tavis: that says what you about his writing? >> that he is a talented fellow, that he is going to go places. it is timeless. how did the idea come to you to do this in your spare time? when i wasfore running buffy and angel and starting to work on firefly, i had been talking with the actors, and a lot of them did shakespeare in the past, and it was part of their training, and they loved it, and we not, we all love it.

don't we meet and have a few drinks and read a play? inis: it was the drinks other words? >> it was the drinks. there was a certain amount of drinking because there was a lot of nervousness. we thought, we have never done this. are terrible? as it kept going, the drinking fell away. together,ut being experiencing the play. even though we were reading it aloud, every moment was beautiful stuff. i think what struck us most was how natural it sounded. went to see a

production. it seems very stately, and when you see it done by somebody you you think, this is something i would love people to see, how fun, however vests how effervescent. a production in 12 days where you were cracking the whip? to get it on film, or were you directing it with the idea of the egg a theatrical release? it using aof theatrical release? >> i was not sure of it being a theatrical release. alexis are good friends, and when they played it 10 years ago i thought, they

should play that, but it was not until i had an idea of what to do as a direct or i thought, i should do it. wanted to capture the urgency, that you are there, that it is really happening. moment,ry much in the but at the same time, i had to make a piece of cinema. everybody was working their hardest. we knew it was going to be incredibly difficult. tavis: >> does it say something to the immediacy of shakespeare's work that you could deliver in a short amount of time? >> if i could have done avengers

in 12 days i would take a long vacation, and america would have been very angry at me. it is all character stuff. i think what made me able to do , people ihe actors knew i could trust, that we were all on the same page because you cannot have surprises. you struck gold lately. i was looking at your work, and we all know there is no such thing as an overnight success, but you really have struck lightning.

it happened for you in this space and time. i am curious. what makes it happen for a particular person? everybody has got something they are trying to get done, yet for certain individuals it starts clicking. that happened for you. >> if we are talking about the i have been a yearssional writer for 24 , so there were a lot of nights.

avengers happens because of connections. proving your self. i got the most was how did you get this job? it was the groundwork i made for years of making tv and proving myself and building up to it and building this troupe of actors. started a micro- to make our own stuff. it is years and years of extreme effort. i do not do anything else. i do not know how to do anything else. when people ask, how to way get started, i do not know. start and do not stop.

given who your parents are, did you have a choice? i think not. i really think i was formed in a lab. my mom was a teacher. my dad was a writer for television. combining those has been the goal of my life. the idea of getting a real job, this job is real hard, but it leads working. i was only prepared to do something artistic. i am not proud of that, but that is a fact. i feel like i am a product of what my mom and dad created. tavis: what is wrong with being wired to only do something artistic?

>> i think there is an insecurity and that whole, if they miss fall apart, we would eat you first, because you cannot hold anything, you cannot you cannot do math. you feel like you are removed from the world in an artistic way. it is a great river lynch, but you think, what happens if that thing, butis a great you think, what happens if that went away. tavis: i assume this time no one asks why you got the job. >> someone recently did. it was a reporter, and i was like, that was the question i usually get. tavis: who was the village? ki.it was low

trying toryone is .igure out who the villain is everyone is trying to get joss , and you justeans ignored me. you disrespected me on that. >> i feel bad. there are word is out a couple new characters. >> we are introducing quicksilver and the scarlet witch. they have been allies. they are very interesting to me. i grew up reading the avengers. they have powers. it is very different from anything we have seen before. i am very excited. tavis: i do not want to

overprocessed this, but is there something that happens when you are an adult and you get a chance to direct something -- stuff,comics is iconic and you are reading this as a kid, and you are the guy that gets to direct it. that feels like what? >> that feels great. that all thee time. you are translating it to a new medium. you want to make sure you are not just being not spelled it -- not doubted, -- being nostalgic, but every once in a while, i am telling for what

to do. what to do. this is a really good life. it is that residents from childhood that makes it extraordinary. because the stuff we today, whenferent you approach it and you want to do justice, but you are exposing it to a new generation, what is the thought process when you tinker with it? >> it is just about understanding what is important, what really made it work. or is going to have a hammer.

he is not going to have a spatula, and there are certain things you let go of. it is really a question of knowing what you love and making sure it is in there and also letting go of that, making sure it would work if you never read a comic that. a lot of people who saw the avengers did not read comic books and enjoyed it. a lot of people who saw much ado did not read shakespeare. assuming on any project there is a certain level of intimidation, what is more trying to make

shakespeare work in 12 days or approaching a major blockbuster you know you have got to get right? >> they are kind of equal. it is the same amount of rob lives, if you are -- of problems, if you are behind and the set is not ready, there was a moment in the avengers when i was like, that is a lot of money. my wife turned to me and said, it is just the next story. that is the last time i worried about it. there are a lot of expectations. was nerve-racking. i do not have a lot except the script. in no it is going to be archaic for some people.

it took me a long time to understand one thing worked for the avengers is it never occurred to me these guys will not hang out. they have been partying together. i just had to translate it. the same for much ado. it makes perfect sense for me to have people walking around in suit speaking elizabethan english. i just had to make sure it made sense for everyone else. you had to wrestle with what your mom does, because she is teaching people, and that is a noble vocation in our society.

when did you come to appreciate your father? >> i admired him and nor butad, -- enormously, when he is writing for captain kangaroo, he is not changing the world. itse shows are good, but took me a long time to understand what art can do and how art and teaching are so similar in their content and , and they can come together without it seeming weight you paid to go to a classroom. that is the best feeling. i worked as a teaching assistant in college. my favorite experience was getting a laugh from a bunch of people because they understood something and it amused them.

that is the perfect moment. were a teaching assistant for what subject? >> for film. >> have you had the occasion and interest to look back at your dad's writings? >> my grandfather wrote radio. it is interesting to see the progression. they both did off off broadway. what do you see? >> they are extremely witty, and but the a likeness, best thing for me was the show , and it wasceled the first time he got to write

like people. it was when they were first trying to do half-hour single , and it was so real and like louis, which is a watershed tv show. fascinated about your father having done some of his best stuff, and it got canceled. you have not had much to deal with, but is there a lesson about how tough this business can be? is a dad's career cautionary tale. it is a roller coaster.

i have always been cautious. this business at some point could turn around. you were great. just leave. something will come, but it will be years. is an absolutely unpredictable existence. you are still interested in doing more tv stuff? >> i have got agents of shield toing out, so i will be able keep my hand in tv while i am doing avengers 2. i want to do everything. i love every aspect.

i love television. i love the internet. i wish i could do everything. when? you start filming >> probably around february. tavis: what are you doing between now and february? >> besides finishing the script and prepping and location scouting, you have to be ready on a level. it is not like how much come to my house and in two weeks we shoot some shakespeare. they have to build an entire world. it is a long process. i am going to let you go. you have a lot to do. is thedo about nothing" new project, and the avengers we will be talking about that.

it is good to have you. that is our show for tonight. as always, keep the faith. are an ass. >> does that not suspect my years? that you were here to write me remember i am an ass. tavis: hi, i'm tavis smiley. join me next time for a conversation withgrace lee boggs

just days before her 90th birthday. that is next time. we will see you then. >> there is a saying that dr. king had that said there is always the right time to do the right thing. i try to live my life every day by doing the right thing. we know that we are only halfway to completely eliminating hunger and we have work to do. walmart committed $2 billion to fighting hunger in the u.s. as we work together, we can stamp hunger out. >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> be more. pbs.

tonight on "quest" -- one of the most troubling effects of global warming is the steady rising of the earth's oceans. "quest" and climate watch investigate how sea level rise will impact san francisco bay and what planners are doing to prepare for the worst. and we all need a little pampering after a long day. find out how the oakland zoo uses a decidedly "hands on" approach to keep the animals healthy and happy.