Sarah Michelle Gellar, the beloved face of Buffy Summers for millions of fans of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise, took to Instagram on March 14 to share a truly devastating piece of news. The long-anticipated Buffy reboot, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale, was canceled by Hulu.
The reaction to the news was swift. Fans were devastated, mourning that the show’s revival meant so much to them and questioning why Hulu had chosen not to move forward with the Buffy reboot. Thanks to People’s interview with Gellar, we now know the answer: a Buffy-hating Hulu executive who didn’t see or believe in the reboot’s vision.
“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 shared with People. “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 [Oscar-winning Chloé Zhao, who was attached to direct and produce the reboot]. 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.”
Worse still, Gellar and Zhao only learned of the revival’s cancellation during two very significant moments in their lives. Gellar received the news during the premiere of her new movie, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, at the SXSW Film & TV Festival. For Zhao, it was just before the weekend when she attended the Oscars for Hamnet, where she was nominated for Best Director.
While Gellar expressed her shock at the cancellation of the Buffy reboot, Zhao told Variety that she was “not surprised” by Hulu’s decision.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale was revealed in February 2025, with a pilot order at Hulu and to be handled by 20th Television and Searchlight Television. It would have introduced a new slayer, played by Skeleton Crew’s Ryan Kiera Armstrong, to star alongside Gellar. While the full plot of the reboot hasn’t been unveiled, it’s safe to speculate that Gellar, as Buffy Summers, would be passing the torch of her vampire slaying duties to Armstrong. With the cancellation, however, it’s unlikely we’ll ever know the full picture.
Original series creator Joss Whedon, who faced accusations of fostering a toxic workplace and misogyny on the set of the original series, was not involved with the show’s reboot.
While the reboot is currently canned, Gellar doesn’t want the cancellation to diminish fans’ love for Buffy and what it means to them.
“Buffy is timeless. And the one thing I do want all these fans to know is that legacy is still there, and this doesn’t diminish it. It doesn’t change it. That legacy is still there — for them.”
It’s surprising that, in an age where entertainment seems to be fueled by nostalgia and endless sequels, the full involvement of the original star and an Oscar-winning director is not enough to give Buffy a chance to come back to screens. Hopefully, Gellar and Zhao will not give up, and their next attempt will not be thwarted by an executive who is proud of having never watched the show.
