Le timing est improbable. Alors que le dernier film en date du Marvel Cinematic Universe vient de sortir en salles et que démarre à San Diego l’annuel raout geek Comic-Con, Disney a annoncé vendredi la fin de sa collaboration avec le scénariste-réalisateur James Gunn.
Grand manitou de la franchise Gardiens de la Galaxie lancée en 2014 et cousine des Avengers, Gunn devait en signer le troisième volet, dont la sortie est prévue pour 2020. Son éviction est due à l’exhumation de vieux tweets et autres billets de blogs pétris d’humour trash au second degré. À la manœuvre de cette opération : l’alt-right américaine, notamment le conspirationniste conservateur Mike Cernovich, qui ne pardonne pas à Gunn son anti-Trumpisme exacerbé.
 
 

Parmi les autres tweets montés en épingle, captures d’écrans à l’appui, par Cernovich et compagnie censés prouver la pseudo-pédophilie de Gunn, on trouve des exemples qui laissent pantois et dont on peine à imaginer qu’ils puissent sincèrement être pris au sérieux, du genre : «Cette douche d’hôtel était la plus faiblarde au monde, j’ai eu l’impression qu’un gamin de 3 ans pissait sur ma tête».
 

Alors que Gunn, déjà mis en cause en 2012, s’était alors excusé pour ses vieilles vannes, son mea culpa renouvelé cette semaine n’a pas convaincu la major hollywoodienne, désormais seule en lice pour racheter les actifs de 21st Century Fox après l’abandon du câblo-opérateur Comcast. «Les propos tenus sur le compte Twitter de James et son comportement sont indéfendables et incompatibles avec les valeurs de notre studio, nous avons mis fin à notre relation professionnelle avec lui», a ainsi expliqué Alan Horn, patron de Walt Disney Studios, maison mère de Marvel, dans un communiqué.
 

on Tuesday said he is "very concerned" that Russia will attempt to interfere in this year's midterm elections, claiming Moscow "will be pushing very hard" to support Democrats.
 
I’m very concerned that Russia will be fighting very hard to have an impact on the upcoming Election. Based on the fact that no President has been tougher on Russia than me, they will be pushing very hard for the Democrats. They definitely don’t want Trump!
 
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 24, 2018
The tweet is the latest in a week's worth of mixed messages Trump has sent on Russia since he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin last Monday.
 
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Trump stood next to Putin in Helsinki and cast doubt on the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election — with the intention of helping to elect Trump. He blasted the special counsel's investigation into Russian meddling as a "witch hunt" and said Putin offered a "strong and powerful" denial.
 
He has since attempted to backtrack on those remarks and express confidence in the intelligence community, but muddled his corrections with repeated claims that the meeting with Putin was unfairly covered, that others besides Moscow could have been involved in election meddling and that the Russian interference is a “big hoax.”
 
Trump also appeared to tell reporters “no” when asked last week whether he believed Russia was still a threat. However, the White House later claimed he was saying “no” to answering additional questions.
 
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats warned shortly before Trump's meeting with Putin that warning signs were "blinking red" to indicate Russia was preparing to launch another cyberattack.
 
Trump has regularly claimed that no president has been tougher on Russia than him, but he has drawn bipartisan criticism for his reluctance to call out Putin, particularly on the matter of election interference.
 
Administration officials have, in many cases, seemed to work around Trump’s rhetoric. They note the administration has armed Ukrainians, bombed Syria, expelled Russian diplomats and even implemented new sanctions, to which Trump first objected.
 
Meanwhile, Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) have co-authored a bill that would hit Russia with additional sanctions if it is found to have interfered in future elections. The senators have requested a committee vote on the legislation by early next month.
 
The president has also frequently told reporters that he believes improved relations with Russia would be a positive development, and said prior to departing for Europe earlier this month that he hoped Putin could someday be a friend.
 
At the press conference in Finland, Putin told reporters he wanted Trump to win the 2016 election.
 
"Yes, I did, because he was the one who wanted to normalize relations with Russia,” Putin said.

Have you guys ever tried "raping" a girl without using force? Try it. It's basically impossible. Date rape does not exist.
 
— Mike Cernovich (@Cernovich) August 12, 2012
 
More recently, last February, he tweeted: “Not being a slut is the only proven way to avoid AIDS. If you love black women, slut shame them.”
 
— Mike Cernovich (@Cernovich) February 5, 2016

“Next time, don’t settle for the make out. If possible, at least pull out your dick. If you can get her to touch it, even better. If not, just let her know that your cock is too swollen to go back into your jeans, and that, ‘either you’re taking care of this, or I am.’ Masturbating will set your anchor nearer the desired destination – pussy [s]port.”
—“When in Doubt, Whip it Out,” www.dangerandplay.com, February 2012
 
“Rape via an alpha male is different from other forms of rape. We can't really understand this, as our culture is too detached from instinct.”
—Twitter, September 2013