Sarah Michelle Gellar recently commemorated the 25th anniversary of Buffy’s series premiere. It’s interesting that some things have been rebooted multiple times in a fairly short span of time, but Buffy The Vampire Slayer has survived the 19 years since its series finale with nothing but some comics added as canon. As a superfan since I fell into the show accidentally with the season one episode “Nightmares” when I was seven, this didn’t bother me. But in 2018, it was announced that there would be a reboot with a Black actress starring as Buffy. I thought that would be really cool and I had the perfect candidate: myself! Search over! But I guess I can get behind Sarah Michelle Gellar’s recently stated preferred pick for the new Buffy: Zendaya.
Sarah Michelle Gellar already knows who she wants to be her successor in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot.
The 44-year-old actress— who portrayed the titular character, Buffy Anne Summers, in the teen drama — recently revealed that she’d love to see Zendaya take over as lead.
In an interview with Evan Ross Katz, author of Into Every Generation a Slayer Is Born: How Buffy Staked Our Hearts for the new book, the actress said she’d fully supports a series reboot if it were to happen, Insider reported Thursday.
When asked who should take over her starring role, Gellar replied, “I vote Zendaya,” while Julie Benz, Gellar’s Buffy costar, echoed, “That would be amazing.”
The idea of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot was first announced in July 2018 with a Black actress in the starring role.
Following the announcement, the Buffyverse fanbase grew divided, as many had mixed feelings about seeing the series go on without Gellar.
However, the star stressed that she’d support the next chapter of the beloved show.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about great storytelling,” Gellar told PEOPLE at the time. “If a story lives on, then I think it should be told in any incarnation it can be told in.
Would the new Slayer be Buffy or simply in the Buffyverse — perhaps she’d be one of the Slayers activated in the series finale? It’s also unclear when or if this reboot will actually happen. There’s been little word on it since the 2018 announcement and it’s thought that it may be on hold since original creator/showrunner Joss Whedon was attached and he’s since been revealed as abusive, misogynistic, exploitative, racist, nationalistic, gaslighting, etc. Maybe they want to get some distance from his name and all the gross stories that have come out about him and that he’s told about himself, but they can make a great show without Whedon’s toxicity. He gets all the credit, but a lot of the original series’ success should be attributed to the writing of Marti Nixon, Jane Espenson, Drew Goddard, David Greenwalt, Drew Greenberg, Doug Petrie, David Fury… I could go on.
As hard as it can be to criticize the things you love, Buffy seriously lacked representation and could be extremely problematic. The only significant characters of color were Kendra (killed off quickly) and Principal Wood (last season Hail Mary and related to one of the few other Black characters). Then there were the two Slayers Spike killed (minorities always die first) and a couple of villains like Forrest, Mr. Sweet, Mr. Trick, and Ashanti. And most egregiously, the completely racist First Slayer portrayal. If I’m forgetting any it’s because they were insignificant. So I do think rebooting it with a Black actress is the right move, but I’m actually not sure Zendaya is the best choice. Even if it’s not going to be me (I’m the same height as SMG, I swear it would be perfect), I think the reboot could be a perfect launchpad for an actress with a lower profile than Zendaya’s, more like 1997 SMG. SMG was known when the show began, but she wasn’t Marvel/HBO known. And while I agree with popular opinion that Zendaya is awesome and has enviable style, I do think one step toward correcting the mistakes of the original series would be to cast a Black actress with a darker skintone and kinkier/curlier hair.
Photos credit: UPN/Avalon.red and via Instagram
Look at those chunky highlights and razored edges. Memories.
And what’s wrong with chunky highlights and razored edges? LOL
It’s a nice thought but Zendaya don’t have time for that. I’m sure there are plenty up and coming black actresses that are perfect for the role.
I don’t watch much tv or movies anymore, so I don’t know much about young actors. But my first thought was that Zendaya is already well established in her career and something like this would be a step back for her.
That’s what I’m thinking – she’d be great, but I think she’s too big a star for this. It’d be great to launch a new actor, or someone who has been doing good work but not very recognized yet.
I bet it won’t happen anyway, because of Whedon.
There are no stars too big for an HBO series though. If they did this on HBO and did it well, the story of a slayer picking up after the end of the series, following the comics I guess, I’d be so down for this.
Buffy on HBO…yes! I loosely followed the comics. Didn’t Dawn have alot more to do??? Bring back Michelle Trachtenberg!
I agree. Z’s too big of a star, and she’d be too old by the time the series started. She’s already 25. Isn’t Buffy in high school?
I had no idea there was even talk about a Buffy reboot. Anywho, if they even go there, I hope they consider SMG as a consultant or executive producer
Zendaya has got bigger fish to fry.
I would love it if Yara Shahidi Grown-ish of (who played Zoey on Black-ish) got the part.
I love her sarcasm…
I think Yara just graduated from Harvard!!
I think that a Buffy reboot would be way below her pay grade and acting abilities.
I remember when there were strong rumors of a Buffy reboot with a black female lead, and I was so excited. I hope they still do this, as the OG said, Joss need not be involved at any level for it to be great. I agree with the other comments that Zendaya is too famous and in demand for this role, but for another young black actress this would a fantastic, star-making opportunity.
I remember when the reboot, as a movie I think, was going string with Heather Morris from Glee, then it fell apart. I agree with Peridot that Zendaya wouldn’t be the right choice for this round though. She’s got too much going on. Alexandra Shipp is probably too old for the role now.
I do wonder, and this would be up to my fellow commenters who are POC to judge better than me, how much casting a black actress in the role of a girl who is constantly in trouble and accused of crimes would change, need to be changed, so as to not play in to any potentially offensive stereotypes.
Oh Zendaya would be perfect for the role and now I can’t unsee it.
I would prefer these “reboots” didn’t take over the story from the start but maybe continue it. So yeah Zendaya but not as Buffy, instead a new cool vampire slayer.
Sigh I liked Kendra a lot.
I would like to see a monoracial young black actress get the part for a change.
Unfortunately, unless they have more POC in the producing and casting process we will get Zendaya or somebody like her “acceptable” to white audiences
Word! I would love that as well. There is no reason not to, and so many deserve the shine.
Black Americans with brown skin are on average, 20 percent European. Monoraciality is not a New World thing.
Unless they were doing a 20-years-later continuation of the story, there’s no reason the lead slayer would be Buffy. She wasn’t the only slayer even in the original series. Give the reboot a new heroine in the Buffy-verse!
i love this idea but only if the slayer isnt Buffy. i dont want to watch that story again instead i want to see a continuation of the slayer story.
I think Zendaya is too famous now for the role, would be better to have an unknown actress who would commit to the role for a few years at least
I like Zendaya, but it’s ok to select other Black actresses, perhaps someone like Chole Bailey or CoCo Jones, Aja Naomi King, Skai Jackson. Anyway, I would watch it because I’ve loved Buffy since the horrible early 90s movie version with Luke Perry.
“Pike’s not a name. It’s a fish.” 🙂
I could never forget that classic line!
I love love a continuation of the Buffy-verse!!!!! Zendaya would be great, but its def a step back for her career-wise. Let’s go with an unknown!
BTVS was about alienation and otherness – about being weak in the known world and strong in the secret world. Zendaya is amazing, but I think the role would better suited for someone not so well-known.
If Whedon was nowhere near it, I’d love to see a continuation of the Buffy-verse. But I think Zendaya, besides being busy, too big, etc, is too old. Buffy’s story resonated with me as a young woman because she was learning about herself and discovering the adult world and the monsters were the perfect metaphors for the toxic people and situations you discover at that age.
Although, now that I’ve said that, I would love Zendaya as an older slayer who thinks she knows it all and comes up against things that change her worldview, more like Giles’ story.
I’d love a muscular Slayer, too, not just stick-thin girls with powers.
All actors were 10 years older than their high school aged characters. Zendaya is perfect person for this reboot. And she is baby-faced anyway.
It doesn’t matter age if you have the look. Charisma Carpenter was one of the oldest high school aged cast members. Bianca Lawson was older than the rest of the “teen” cast when she played Kendra. David B. was way too old to play Angel(who was supposed to be 17). It standard to cast real adults in these roles.
Why not an alternate universe where Kendra was called first? She still looks young enough to play a teenager and it could allow for some original cast to participate in some way.
Zendaya is one of the hottest young actresses coming up, so of course SMG would want her.
That said, there is a lot of talent to choose from. I love Z but she doesn’t need to be every role of note for a young black woman, there is other talent.
Stop pushing this girl onto everything! So sick of her face popping up everywhere.
She isn’t even that pretty nor talented.
Zendaya’s lovely, and if she’s “everywhere” it’s because she gets butts on seats, money in the coffers, and she puts in the promotional work.
This makes you sound really bitter. God forbid a black biracial woman be doing well and be wished well.
I’m not even getting into how much of her career directly contradicts your assessment.
No. Absolutely not. Zendaya doesn’t need to headline a crappy reboot for a show that constantly used PoC as the butt of obnoxious jokes, or as abitrary redshirts; and they certainly don’t need to put money in that creep, Joss Whedon’s pockets after his comments about Ray Fisher and Gal Gadot, and behaviour on multiple sets.
Zendaya also has a wonderful career right now, this would be twenty steps down and take up far too much of her time for no good reason. She certainly doesn’t need to play a quippy teenager when she’s transitioning well to better and more adult roles.
Honestly, Buffy doesn’t need a revival. It was borderline creepy enough in subtext *and* text the first time.
If this show didn’t want a Black main character when it was a raging success, it shouldn’t get to use one now that it wants a bailout on it’s showrumner’s scandals and the terrible implications/representation it had for PoC during it’s entire run.
This would be several steps backward for Zendaya anyway. It would be better for her to pick a series with source material that had a Black woman author and is diverse from the start. There are plenty of those that could use being greenlit by having a star like her. Though I’d think she’s far too busy for this kind of project filming movies anyway. Euphoria has had to have years between seasons.
I’m getting tired to see Zendaya in every damn movie honestly.
She and Zoe Kravitz are the go-to actresses for ‘we need a POC in the cast but not a too noticeable one, so the racist crowd won’t hate too much’