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Marti Noxon (born 1964) is a television and film writer perhaps best known for her work as a writer and executive producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She is a graduate of Kresge College at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Besides her work on Buffy, she co-wrote the 1999 movie Just A Little Harmless Sex.
When the WB television network accepted the Buffy spin-off series, Angel, Joss Whedon, the creator and executive producer of both series, promoted Noxon from writer to executive producer and gave her increasing charge of producing Buffy.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Noxon joined the Buffy writing staff in the second season, and wrote a number of episodes that became fan favorites, including "What's My Line" (parts One and Two), "I Only Have Eyes for You" and "The Wish". However, many viewers had reservations about the sixth and seventh seasons, and some held Noxon responsible for what they regarded as the decline of the show.
Specific complaints include the brutal ending of the relationship between Willow and Tara, the decreasing attention given to Xander as a central character, the use of a trio of nerds as villains, Buffy's increasingly self-centered sexual relationship with Spike, and the use of magic as a metaphor for drug use.
In addition, Sarah Michelle Gellar, who played Buffy, disliked the way her character was treated in the sixth season. Concerning Buffy's sexual affair with Spike, Gellar said, "I had trouble with the one where Buffy had sex with Spike on the balcony while watching their friends. I really thought that was out of character. And I didn't like what it stood for. That was the moment that I had the most problems with." Gellar was also disappointed with the show's sixth season in general, especially Buffy's depression and sexual obsession with Spike. "It wasn't who Buffy was, or why people loved her," Gellar observed. "You don't want to see that dark heroine; you don't want to see her punishing herself. You want to see her killing vampires and making quips. It didn't feel like the character that I loved" [1]. Gellar also thinks that the season seven finale was too short and that it shortchanged some of the series' other stars' screen time. â??I believe the finale of Buffy should have been two hours," she says. "I think a lot of the characters, specifically Xander, didnâ??t get enough screen timeâ?? [2].
Still, while many fans--and Gellar herself--have reservations about Buffy's last two seasons, these are sometimes ascribed to other causes than Noxon's growing responsibilities. Some assign no particular blame to the executive producer, while others lay the blame squarely at the feet of the show's creator, Joss Whedon, and view the "Noxon-bashing" as scapegoating. Whedon himself maintains that he retained full creative control over the show (and, in particular, over the show's story arc, stating at one point: "I killed Tara") and counters claims that stewardship of the show's "mission" was delegated to Noxon:
- Marti. . . and I shaped this year very carefully, and while we made mistakes (as we do every year), we made our show. We explored what we wanted to, said what we meant. You don't have to like it, but don't think it comes from neglect. [3]
Noxon was a story editor (1997-1998), co-producer (1998-1999), supervising producer (1999-2000), co-executive producer (2000-2001) and executive producer (2001-2003) on Buffy, as well as the director of two season five episodes: "Into the Woods" and "Forever").
Noxon also appeared on the show as the aptly named "Parking Ticket Woman", who sings about a parking ticket she has received in the season six musical episode "Once More, With Feeling"), reprising the role in the season seven episode "Selfless", now singing with a neighbor (played by David Fury, also reprising his role from "Once More With Feeling") about his mustard-stained shirt.
Noxon is credited as the writer or co-writer of the following Buffy episodes:
- "What's My Line, Part One"
- "What's My Line, Part Two"
- "Bad Eggs"
- "Surprise"
- "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered"
- "I Only Have Eyes for You"
- "Dead Man's Party"
- "Beauty and the Beasts"
- "The Wish"
- "Consequences"
- "The Prom"
- "Living Conditions"
- "Wild at Heart"
- "Goodbye Iowa"
- "New Moon Rising"
- "Buffy vs. Dracula"
- "Into the Woods"
- "Forever"
- "Bargaining I"
- "Wrecked"
- "Villains"
- "Bring on the Night"
- It is revealed on the "Hush" DVD commentary that Noxon was responsible for the casting of Amber Benson as Tara.
- Noxon sang the theme tune for the Cordy show in the Angel episode "Birthday". [4]
- Marti Noxon also sang the song "The Parking Ticket" in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical episode "Once More, With Feeling".
Other work
Noxon's filmography includes motion picture screenwriting and acting credits.
Just A Little Harmless Sex
With Roger Mills, Noxon co-wrote Just a Little Harmless Sex (1999). Directed by Rick Rosenthal and starring Alison Eastwood, Jonathan Silverman, Rachel Hunter, Lauren Hutton, Robert Mailhouse, and others, this romantic comedy revolves around the offer of oral sex by a stranded motorist (and prostitute) to a monogamous man who stops to help her. Arrested by a passing police officer, the unlikely good Samaritan must telephone his wife to bail him out in the middle of the night. A few days later, she throws him out of the house and goes out with her friends to enjoy a sexy night on the town. The denouement takes place when all the parties meet at a local nightclub for explanations and apologies.
Godmoney
Noxon also had a minor part in Godmoney (1997), playing a wife. Directed by darren Doan and starring Rick Rodney, Bobby Field, Christi Allen, and others, the film recounts the exploits of a young man who turns to crime when he is fired from his dead end job.
After Buffy
Noxon's work after Buffy continues to be a mixture of successes and failures. After Buffy concluded its final season, Noxon went on to write the pilot for the TV series Still Life, which was not picked up, and, as executive producer, co-created Point Pleasant (which was canceled in 2005, after eight episodes, although 13 were filmed). She is credited as a consulting producer on the TV show Prison Break but left after the 10th episode of the first season.
Still Life (2005) - Writer
The main character, Jake Morgan, is killed on his first day as a police officer. A year later, his family is coping, as best they can, with their loss. Jake is the show's narrator. His mother seeks to fulfill a long-time dream, running for office. His father tries to recover his zest for life. Jake's brother, Max, seeks to find himself. Jake's two younger sisters endeavor to make find meaning in a life without their brother.
Point Pleasant (2005) - Co-creator, Executive Producer, Writer
Point Pleasant, New Jersey, becomes home to Christina Nickson after she is rescued from the sea. Never having known her mother and estranged from her father, Christina comes to live with a down-to-earth family who has lost a daughter. No one, including Christina herself, knows that Christina is Satan's daughter. When she becomes upset, strange things happen, although Christina tries to live a normal life. Discovering clues as to the identity of her mother, Christina remains in Point Pleasant, thereby unwittingly fulfilling the prophecy that declares that a great war between heaven and hell will begin in the town. The only question seems to be which side Christina will be on when the battles begin.
Brothers & Sisters
Noxon's latest effort, Brothers & Sisters (2006), concerns siblings who run a family business after their father's death. It stars Calista Flockhart, Rachel Griffiths, Ron Rifkin, Balthazar Getty and Patricia Wettig. The hour-long series airs on ABC. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Noxon's role as an executive producer of the show is part of a "two-year overall [seven-figure] deal with Touchstone TV," under which she also must "serve as showrunner if the drama. . . is picked up to series" and "additionally, Noxon will develop her own projects for Touchstone TV."
Noxon quit the show abruptly in August 2006 as a result of "creative differences" with the creator, Robin Baitz [5]. According to an article in the Los Angeles Times, "The defection of Noxon, who as the "show runner" was the producer responsible for day-to-day supervision of the series, casts a cloud over" the series. Noxon was replaced by Touchstone's Greg Berlanti [6].
Personal life
Noxon is married to Jeff Bynum, who worked for Whedon's production company, Mutant Enemy, while Noxon worked on Buffy. They have a black dog named Finn. She admits to having been superstitious as a child, worrying about her mother's safety whenever she flew and being convinced that her house was haunted: "When I was young I carried the weight of the world. If my mom would fly, I would worry about all the bad things that could happen," Noxon remembers. "And I was so afraid of ghosts. We found some stuff in the attic that belonged to a woman named Bertha--old dresses, letters and stuff. I thought she lived in the house. So I was afraid of the natural and the supernatural" [7].
See also
External links
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