Almost seven years ago, it was announced that a reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was in development with Monica Owusu-Breen, co-creator of the TV show Midnight, Texas, writing, executive producing, and serving as showrunner. It was said that the new show would be “contemporary, building on the mythology of the original.” That project never made it into production – and earlier this year, it was revealed that we’re going to be getting a Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival instead, with Sarah Michelle Gellar returning to the role of Buffy Summers and Chloé Zhao (Nomadland, Eternals) directing the first episode. Apparently the new show is called Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale – and while talking to Variety, Gellar said that viewers who haven’t seen the original show won’t need to do any homework to catch up on what’s going on in the new one.
Teenage actress Ryan Kiera Armstrong (Firestarter) has been cast as a new slayer, an introverted high school student named Nova. Also in the cast are Faly Rakotohavana (Unprisoned), Ava Jean (Law & Order: SVU), Sarah Bock (Severance), Daniel Di Tomasso (CSI: Vegas) and Jack Cutmore-Scott (Frasier) are also in the cast, taking on the series regular roles of Hugo, a privileged, likable high-school student who is a geek; Larkin, another student described as a “chronic do-gooder”; Gracie, the ringleader for a group of church-going students; Abe, Nova’s single father who is a photojournalist; and Mr. Burke, a popular high school teacher. Kingston Vernes (The Survivor) has been cast as Nova’s crush, Carson, and will be a guest star in the pilot, but Carson is envisioned as being a major recurring character if the project goes to series. He’s “a Junior Olympian and popular student at New Sunnydale Academy who is the object of Nova’s crush and starts noticing her after a life-changing event.” Chase Sui Wonders (I Know What You Did Last Summer 2025) makes a guest appearance in the pilot. Merrin Dungey (The Lincoln Lawyer), Audrey Hsieh (Found), and Audrey Grace Marshall (The Flight Attendant) are guest stars in the pilot, but they could have recurring roles if the show is ordered to series. Dungey’s character is Ms. LaDuca, the college counselor at New Sunnydale Academy. Hsieh and Marshall play Keiko and Jessica, high school students and members of the academy’s Evangelical Christian group.
Oscar-winning director Zhao, who is a self-professed lifelong Buffy fan, is directing the pilot from a script by Nora and Lilla Zuckerman (Poker Face). The revival is coming our way from 20th Television and Searchlight TV, where Zhao has a first-look deal. Deadline recently said that the revival would be “starting a writers room soon, a sign that Hulu and the studios have high expectations for the project going to series. It is unclear yet whether other original Buffy cast members would return; that is considered likely.”
This is being referred to as “the next chapter in the Buffyverse.” The revival is being executive produced by Gellar, Zhao, and the Zuckermans, as well as the original series’ executive producers Gail Berman of the Jackal Group and Fran Kuzui and Kaz Kuzui of Suite B. Also executive producing the pilot is Dolly Parton, whose company Sandollar was behind the original show. In case you’re wondering, “Buffy creator Joss Whedon, who also wrote the 1992 movie the series was based on, has no involvement in the reboot. He has not worked in Hollywood in any official capacity since facing a slew of misconduct allegations in 2021.”
Gellar told Variety viewers won’t have to watch the original show before checking this one out. “This is a show that will cater definitely to the [original fans]. There will always be Easter eggs because there was Easter eggs in the original…but we also want to introduce it to people that maybe haven’t seen the show.” As for playing Buffy again, “It was not a place that I ever saw myself, so it definitely felt very surreal. But this is why you never say never, and I’m sure I said ‘never’ many times and I’ve learned my lesson because I’m sure someday you’re gonna go back and find all the times I said, ‘No, never. I’m too old. It’ll be Buffy with a walker.’” Why did she come back after saying “never” so many times? “Chloe had this idea in a world and the passion with which she spoke both about her idea and the show made me realize that now more than ever we need those heroes to believe in. It’s tough times for everybody right now, and I think people feel more isolated and more alone and we live in an incredibly digital society. But ultimately the more and more technologically connected we get, the more disconnected we’re becoming and so found family and those true moments become more and more important.“
Are you looking forward to seeing Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy again in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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