The upcoming Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival is “for all the fans”, according to Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Earlier this week (3 February), it was announced that Hulu will revive the iconic fantasy drama with the Cruel Intentions icon attached as executive producer, Oscar-winner Chloé Zhao as director and Poker Face showrunners Nora and Lilla Zuckerman as writers.
Dolly Parton, whose company Sandollar produced the classic 90s series, is also set to executive produce the pilot.
After three days of pandemonium online from Buffy fans (and this writer), Gellar has issued a statement explaining her reasons for returning to the series, despite years of denying that a follow-up should exist.
“Three years ago, I got a call from my dear friend and mentor, Gail Berman. She told me that she wanted me to sit down with Chloé Zhao to hear her take on a potential Buffy revival,” Gellar started.
“I was blown away that Chloé even knew who I was, but, as I’ve always done, I told Gail that I just didn’t see a way for the show to exist again. We’d always been aligned on that, but this time I heard something different in her voice. I eventually agreed to go (mainly just to meet Chloé) and our twenty minute coffee quickly turned into a four hour adventure.
“We laughed, we cried, but mostly we both talked about how much this show means to us.”
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Although Gellar revealed that she “didn’t agree” to returning as Buffy, widely regarded as one of the best television characters in history, she continued the conversations “over the next few years and eventually we added the incredible Nora and Lilla Zuckermna to our little tribe until ultimately, one day, we landed on an idea”.
“I have always listened to the fans and heard your desire to revisit Buffy and her world, but it was not something I could do unless I was sure we would get it right. This has been a long process, and it’s not over yet. I promise you, we will only make this show if we know we can do it right,” she continued.
“And I will tell you that we are on the path there. I feel so lucky to be on this journey with these four unbelievably talented women, all of whom love Buffy as much as I do. And as much as you do. Thank you to all the fans who never stopped asking for this. This will be for you.”
Since airing between 1997 and 2003, Buffy the Vampire Slayer has been lauded as one of the greatest shows of all time. Various episodes have been acclaimed as some of television’s best, particularly ‘Hush’, ‘The Body’ and ‘Once More, With Feeling’.
It influenced countless series within the same genre, such as Charmed, Once Upon a Time, Orphan Black, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Wynonna Earp, and Wednesday—pretty much any show that followed with a strong female protagonist at the helm.
Buffy made history for queer representation, with Willow Rosenberg (Alyson Hannigan) and Tara Maclay (Amber Benson) blazing a trail as the first long-term lesbian relationship on American television. Additionally, season seven included television’s first-ever lesbian sex scene.
Reminisce on the queerest moments from Buffy the Vampire Slayer here.
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