Joss Whedon’s hoping to save the world again, only this time, it’s not from vampires, demons, or robots — it’s from Donald Trump — and he’s enlisted the help of Hollywood’s elite.
In a public service announcement published by Whedon’s latest project, a super PAC called “Save the Day,” celebrities like “Avengers” castmates Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, and Don Cheadle as well as “Hamilton” star Leslie Odom Jr., and Matt McGorry of “Orange is the New Black,” stress the importance of voting in this year’s election, while throwing a few thinnly-veiled jabs at the Republican presidential nominee.
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Starting with Downey, actor and comedian Keegan-Michael Key, and Johansson calling it the most important decision in the country’s history, the video states that it got together “a lot of famous people” to show you the importance of your vote.
And although the three-minute video does not name either candidate directly, it’s not particularly difficult to figure out who is being talked about when Odom Jr. asks, “Do we really want to give nuclear weapons to a man whose signature move is firing things?”
Earlier, Cheadle warns of “a racist, abusive coward who can damage the fabric of our society.”
The video ends with a promise from the stars that if you do go out and vote, then Ruffalo’s next role would include a nude scene.
Or as Johansson put it, “full monty.”
The “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator ended his 19-monthslong breakup with Twitter on Wednesday morning to unveil “Save the Day.”
“Hey! Did I miss anything? Lol jk the world is on fire,” tweeted Whedon. “[H]ere’s a thing I made savetheday.vote.”
Hey! Did I miss anything? Lol jk the world is on fire 😂 here's a thing I made https://t.co/g1SE45Rkrv
— Joss Whedon (@joss) September 21, 2016
“Save the Day” describes itself as a “a short-form digital production company dedicated to the idea that voting is a necessary and heroic act.”
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In an interview with Buzzfeed, Whedon said it was relatively easy to pull together all of the celebrities for the video.
“It was pretty much the same spiel to everybody: ‘Doing a voting PSA to help get out the vote and stop orange Muppet Hitler,’” Whedon told Buzzfeed.
This isn’t the first time Whedon’s stuck his toes in the political waters. In 2012, one week before the election, Whedon published a video in which he warned that electing former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney to the White House would put the country on the “path to the zombie apocalypse.”
Watch the video (warning: contains graphic language)
View behind-the-scenes footage
Aimee Ortiz can be reached at aimee.ortiz@globe.com. Follow her on twitter @aimee_ortiz.