Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy Reboot Scrapped, Shockingly Blames Executive
Hulu just scrapped one of the most anticipated reboots. And the news has shocked fans of the iconic franchise.
The news disheartened fans when they learned that Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy reboot was scrapped. Gellar, who was reprising her role as Buffy from the original TV series, has come forward to share what went wrong. And apparently, it came down to one executive’s opinion.
The project, tentatively titled Buffy: New Sunnydale, with Oscar-winning Chloé Zhao, a self-professed lifelong Buffy fan, directing from a script written by Nora and Lilla Zuckerman (Poker Face). This was a year after Hulu ordered a pilot for the project.
Recently, speculation over the pilot has surfaced, with many sources describing it as “not perfect,” noting that Zhao’s sensibility may not have been the perfect match for the reboot. And while there’s been talk about reworking the pilot, the unfortunate news that Hulu has opted not to proceed has left fans disappointed.
Gellar went to Instagram to share the unfortunate news.
“So I’m really sad to have to share this,” Gellar starts in her post. “Hulu has decided not to move forward with Buffy: New Sunnydale.”
Gellar continues, saying, “I want to thank Chloé, because I never thought I would find myself back in Buffy’s stylish yet affordable boots. And thanks to Chloé, I was reminded how much I love her and how much she means not only to me but to all of you. And this doesn’t change any of that. And I promise if the apocalypse actually comes, you can still beep me.”
Considering the work put into the project and the excitement of fans, this is a shock. The new series would have followed Kiera Armstrong, a new young Slayer, as she navigated high school in the present day with a fresh cast of classmates and teachers. Gellar would still be part of the show, acting as a veteran undead fighter from her original role, and would have tied the plot together.
The series was planned to air this year, making it that much more frustrating. “No one saw this coming, including the head of Searchlight [Pictures],” Gellar told People. “I got the call as we were stepping onto the stage for the premiere of their own movie [Ready or Not 2]. And it’s also the weekend of Chloé going to the Oscars as a best director nominee for Hamnet.”
When processing the reason behind Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy reboot getting scrapped, Gellar places the blame on a single executive, saying that they made the project an “uphill battle” from the start.
“We had an executive on our show who was not only not a fan of the original, but was proud to constantly remind us that he had never seen the entirety of the series and how it wasn’t for him,” Gellar explained. “That’s very hard when you’re taking a property that is as beloved as Buffy, not just to the world, but to me and Chloé.”
“So that tells you the uphill battle that we had been fighting since day one, when your executive is literally proud to tell you that he didn’t watch it… So how do you do a show that’s beloved with someone that doesn’t love it?”
There’s no news about another reboot in the future or a rewrite, but hopefully we have the chance to see Buffy on screen again.
