One of the main reasons so many people have taken to the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the interconnectedness of it all. At the same time, the attention to continuity and building a new superhero canon has wreaked no small amount of havoc on the creative end, where producers and writers and directors have all butted heads in various ways. The latest bit of weirdness comes via the increasingly honest Joss Whedon, who hasn’t been shy about his friction with Marvel Studios while he’s been promoting Avengers: Age of Ultron. According to Whedon, Marvel Studios wasn't very happy with the decision to make a TV show starring a character (Agent Coulson) they had just killed off in the movies.

Speaking with IGN, Whedon reiterated that it is absolutely vital that Coulson remains deceased on the big screen:

As far as I’m concerned in the films, yes he’s dead. In terms of the narrative of these guys [The Avengers] his loss was very important. When I created the television show, it was sort of on the understanding that this can work and we can do it with integrity, but these Avengers movies are for people to see the Avengers movies and nothing else. And it would neither make sense nor be useful to say ‘Oh and by the way remember me? I died!’

The stickiest aspect of all of this is that Whedon is credited as a creator on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which means that he either didn’t put up much of a fight to keep Coulson dead or he was overruled.

If anything, Marvel Film and Marvel Television seem to be butting heads over a few key issues. Whedon also hinted that the two divisions aren’t getting along as well as anyone would like:

I think actually the movie people were a little bit cross about the TV show. They were sort of like ‘Well you can have this but not this. And this but not that.’ It’s complicated enough as it is without me adding another layer of complication. We also created a TV show called S.H.I.E.L.D. right before they made a movie where they destroyed S.H.I.E.L.D.. So everybody’s having a GREAT time!

At least he has a sense of humor about it all. Go take a nap, Mr. Whedon. You sound very tired.

In any case, Whedon’s insistence on Coulson remaining dead in the actual films and Marvel Studios’ annoyance with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. suggests that any potential crossovers are far less likely than we once thought. We’ve wondered if Tony Stark would ever show up on TV or if Agent Coulson would ever pop up in a future Avengers movie, but the answer looks like no.

Avengers: Age of Ultron opens on May 1.