Nicholas Brendon is said to have “groomed” teenagers in the years before his death at the age of 54.
In an exclusive interview with Page Six, the now 30-year-old woman (we’ll call her Jane Doe 1) detailed for the first time her experience with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer star, who passed away on March 20th.
“When I heard the news that he had passed away, I cried in pure relief,” Doe 1, one of about 9,000 members of the Nicholas Brendon Awareness Facebook group, where alleged victims share their stories and exchange resources, told us.
Doe 1, who currently lives in Virginia but previously lived in South Carolina, said she met Brendon at Awesome Con in Washington, D.C., in April 2013 when she was 17 years old.
“I’ve always wanted to be an actor since I was a kid,” she explained. “So whenever I went to a (fan) convention, I saw it as a time to promote myself a little bit and be with people that I consider to be my peers.”
Doe 1 said Brendon, then 42, gave her the “biggest hug” she had ever experienced.
“I was like, ‘Hey, I’m an actor. Can I give you my number? Can you help me?'” she recalled telling him.
“He seemed like he was all about it, and I was like, ‘Wow!’ So we started texting, and it just clicked,” she claimed, thinking to herself, “I’m 17 years old and I’m talking to the fucking King Xander from Buffy. Oh.”
Doe 1 was clearly “hooked on st.”
“I remember him being at this ski resort or snowboarding area and it was cold and he was talking about taking me there so we could cuddle and get warm,” Doe claimed, noting that Brendon “didn’t immediately start asking for nudes,” but that he allegedly eventually did.
“I was like, ‘Brother, I’m 17.’ I was stupid enough to think, ‘I hope I don’t get in trouble for having nude 17-year-olds on my phone.’ And he said, “Okay, you’re of the age of consent.” Just send me the nudes. ”He actually looked up the age of consent (in South Carolina). ”
Dou 1, who describes herself as “an artist at heart,” said she “hid the lovely nude with a scarf” and “tried to take a classy nude.”
“So I sent it to him over and over again and he said, ‘That’s not enough, I want to see everyone,'” she claimed. “And I thought, ‘I’m not happy with that.’ And he said, ‘I’m famous.’ Pay attention.” You should do what I asked. ”
Doe 1 claimed that she “tried to appease him a couple more times” before the actor “ghosted” her less than six months after they met.
“I was completely devastated,” she confessed as she began to cry, adding, “I thought I would end up with this man and he would help me.”
Doe 1 said the experience affected her subsequent relationships, and she found herself giving men whatever they wanted because she “didn’t want to be rejected the way[Brendon]rejected me.”
As a college student, her view of the situation was that Brendon was “just a dumb guy who was trying to take advantage of[her].”
However, in September 2024, Doe #1 came across a TikTok posted by Brendon’s ex-girlfriend Sarah Allison. Sarah Allison also served as his career assistant during their time together.
After their personal and professional relationships ended, Alison became an advocate for domestic violence survivors through her “Slay the Silence” account. (She has repeatedly accused Brendon of addiction abuse against herself and others. Brendon has never addressed her allegations, but he has had several run-ins with the law, including separate cases involving domestic violence and drug-related charges.)
“That’s what led me back to therapy,” Doe1 said of watching Allison’s video, noting that she quickly came to understand that Brendon was more than just a man who broke her heart.
“I really reflected and realized, ‘Oh, I was really being groomed. This was worse than I thought,'” she recalled. (By definition, grooming occurs when a person systematically establishes a trusting relationship with a potentially vulnerable child, youth, or adult in order to manipulate, coerce, or coerce them into sexual activity. This may occur online or in person, and may occur over short or long-term periods ranging from days to years.)
Do 1 said she quickly connected with Alison and was invited to join a support group on Facebook.
“It made me feel like I wasn’t alone. It made me feel better about myself. I know it sounds awful, but this wasn’t what I wanted to be special about,” Dou 1 said, lamenting that she “didn’t speak up sooner” because it took her so long to “process” what allegedly happened to her.
“I feel sad that I couldn’t have done more. I feel sorry for everyone. Trauma is not a competition, so I try not to compare traumas, but I feel sorry for people who have had it worse than me. As a friend pointed out, I thank God he didn’t actually put his hands on me, because it would have been what it would have been.”
Doe 1 continued, “Another reason I’m so happy about his death is because I’d heard (rumors) that he was going back and forth between Virginia and California, and I live in Virginia, so I was living in constant fear of, ‘Oh my god, am I going to run into him someday?’
Doe 1 said that it “feels a little sick to celebrate” Brendon’s death, but explained that he was “tired of bad people being dramatized just because they happened to do something that literally all of us do.”
“Yes, we all die. It’s not special. It’s not a special event. So why does he deserve praise and grace now that he’s dead? He’s not special because he’s dead.”
Page Six spoke with other members of the Nicholas Brendon Awareness Group, who also allegedly worked directly with the TV personality.
Jane Doe II, a middle school teacher in Kansas, said she became friends with Alison during her relationship with Brendon. The abuse allegations in their relationship were “well advanced” at that point, but Doe 2 claimed he didn’t know about it until later.
Doo 2 said he invited Brendon to be a guest on his YouTube read-aloud series as people were forced to quarantine due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“He was in a train accident. He could barely read,” Doe No. 2 claimed, theorizing that Brendon, who had been to rehab many times before his death, was probably drunk or high.
“He was so awkward that he even made a rape joke during a live show!” she claimed. “This was something I did through my school district account and kind of promoted it, you know what I mean? I was just horrified.”
Doe #2 added that when he asked Brendon to sign a copy of the Buffy board game, Brendon replied, “I have dirty thoughts running through my head right now.”
He then allegedly picked up a Sharpie, circled the Angelus mansion (see “Buffy” show) and wrote, “If you like fucking kids, come here.” She provided Page Six with a photo of the autographed game.
“I’ve never heard or seen another celebrity give fans access in the way he does,” Doo2 told Us, slamming Brendon’s “desperation” to make a few bucks while stroking his ego.
She also highlighted that he played a beloved character on a popular series, and said she believes that makes it difficult for fans to accept his alleged actions as a real person.
“I think people have been fiercely protective of him because he’s always been like this adorable hurt puppy that you just want to help and save,” she opined.
Representatives for Brendon did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment regarding the Jane Doe 1 and 2 allegations.
When his family announced his death, they described him as “a man who lived with passion, imagination and heart.”
They also acknowledged that his “struggles” are “not a secret,” while also mentioning “those who really know him.”
The family claimed that Brendon “died in his sleep of natural causes,” but the Indiana medical examiner who handled the case has not yet released a cause of death.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.
