If the long-gestating Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot ever sees the light of day, it will be without original star Sarah Michelle Gellar.
During an appearance on the On with Mario Lopez podcast, Gellar said:
“I’m a wee bit, how do they say, long in the tooth for that.” She added that the monsters Buffy faced “were a metaphor for the horrors of adolescence.”
“I don’t think it’s me,” she said.
“I don’t think I should be the one doing it… I’m way too tired and cranky to put in that work again.”
The news is unsurprising given that Gellar has been vocal about putting the role behind her and moving on to other projects.
The actress also declined to discuss the abuse allegations that have been made against Buffy creator Joss Whedon.
Charisma Carpenter, who played Cordelia Chase, came forward with allegations against Whedon, citing his “abuse of power” on the set of Buffy and its spinoff Angel.
“Joss Whedon abused his power on numerous occasions while working on the sets of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel,” Carpenter said.
“While he found his misconduct amusing, it only served to intensify my performance anxiety, disempower me, and alienate me from my peers.”
“The disturbing incidents triggered a chronic physical condition from which I still suffer. It is with a beating, heavy heart that I say I coped in isolation and, at times, destructively,” she continued.
“While I am proud to have my name associated with Buffy Summers, I don’t want to be forever associated with the name Joss Whedon,” said Gellar in response to the allegations last week.
“I stand with all survivors of abuse and am proud of them for speaking out.”
She said that she would not be making any further statements and is currently “more focused on raising my family and surviving a pandemic.”
The Buffy reboot was first announced in July 2018, with Joss Whedon returning as executive producer, while Monica Owusu-Breen (Midnight, Texas) was attached as writer and showrunner of the potential series.
It’s hard to imagine Whedon still being attached should it come to pass, but the project was said to be “contemporary and build on the mythology of the original.”
What are your thoughts on Gellar ruling herself out of ever returning to the franchise?
Do you think it’s best to leave the franchise as concluded?
Hit the comments below.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.