‘Buffy The Vampire Slayer’ Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar Fully Supports Reboot Amid Fan Backlash
It’s been over 10 years since Buffy the Vampire Slayer ended its seven-season run, but for diehard Buffy fans, Sarah Michelle Gellar will always be remembered for playing the titular role of Buffy Summers.
Fans were overjoyed following the announcement back in July that the sci-fi/fantasy series would be getting its own reboot. However, excitement quickly turned to anger when it was also announced that Gellar would not be reprising her role as the vampire slayer. Instead, a black actress would be taking over the coveted role.
As the fan backlash continues to rage on, Gellar, 41, made the choice to include her voice in the discussion.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about great storytelling. If a story lives on, then I think it should be told in any incarnation it can be told in,” she told People.
Gellar’s full-fledged support comes after her former Buffy co-star, David Boreanaz, who played the role of Buffy’s tormented, vampire boyfriend Angel, voiced his support for the reboot at New York Comic-Con after the topic was met with ample “audible boos” from devoted fans of the original series.
“Come on, guys. It’s a good thing. Let’s just embrace [it]. I’m very happy for them. They want to embrace a new generation, something new. … I’m all for it. I think it’s fantastic. Good for them. I hope that it becomes huge and successful,” he told the crowd.
The Cruel Intentions actress couldn’t agree more with the Bones actor’s words, simply stating, “I’m with David.”
Some of the original cast, which included Gellar, Boreanaz, Nicholas Brendon (Xander), Alyson Hannigan (Willow), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia) and James Marsters (Spike), reunited last year to celebrate the show’s 20th anniversary.
While Joss Whedon, the creator of the original Buffy series, is set to make a return for the reboot, he will be doing so as a producer and not as the showrunner.
Instead, seasoned TV writer and producer Monica Owusu-Breen was tapped by Fox to act as the new showrunner. Her past works include Alias, Fringe, Brothers & Sisters, Lost, and Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Currently, Owusu-Breen is the showrunner on the NBC fantasy series Midnight Texas.
Following fan disdain over the reboot’s main character casting announcement, Owusu-Breen took to Twitter in July to issue her own statement on how she has no intention of even attempting to copy the original series or the original characters, as “there is only one” of each.
— monicaowusubreen (@monicabreen) July 26, 2018
As of now, there is no word on when the Buffy reboot is expected to make its debut.
