Hulu is investing in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale.
Sarah Michelle Gellar has revealed that a revival of the hit ’90s series Buffy the Vampire Slayer will sadly never happen.
“So, I’m really sad to have to share this, but I wanted you all to hear my voice. Unfortunately, Hulu has decided not to move forward with production on Buffy: The New Sunnydale,” the actress began in a shocking Instagram video on Saturday.
“I want to thank Chloé Zhao because I never thought I’d get to wear Buffy’s stylish and affordable boots again,” Geller continued. “And Chloe reminded me how much I love her and how much she means to not only me but all of you. And this doesn’t change all of that.”
The “Ready or Not 2” star added, “If the apocalypse actually comes, I promise you you’ll still have me beeping.”
Fans immediately flooded the comments section to share their upset, with one user writing: “Can you put it on another streaming service?! Please.”
A second follower chimed in: “Honestly, it breaks my heart! I’m not exaggerating.”
“Beep!!! It’s beeping!!! Devastated,” another said. “The world needs Buffy now more than ever.”
One outraged person directly criticized the streamer, writing, “Hulu not picking up the BTVS revival series even though SMG finally agreed to come back, Chloé Zhao directing (Oscar winning director) and the Zuckerman family (Poker Face) is completely insane to me and others in the know. Please fix this problem @hulu!!”
The news comes a year after Hulu first ordered a pilot for the project. The 43-year-old director Chao co-wrote the screenplay with Poker Face screenwriters Nora and Lila Zuckerman.
According to Deadline, sources said the pilot “wasn’t perfect.”
The official added that Mr. Zhao may not have been the right person for the job.
“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” originally aired for seven seasons from 1997 to 2003.
And after years of saying Gellar would “never” return to the Buffy-Verse, Zhao changed the former Vampire Slayer’s mind.
“I actually like it when people bring up that I said ‘never,’ because that’s how I really felt,” Geller told Comic Book on Friday. “So, the lesson is, first of all, young kids…never say never. You say, ‘I don’t see that happening,’ but don’t say, ‘never,’ because then you’re putting egg on your face.”
“But I really thought that was where I was meant to be,” she admitted. “I never asked why to do it or why to do it. Then Chloé Zhao came to me. And she had a reason and she had a take. And I was in a different place. The world was in a different place.”
As for how the “Hamnet” filmmaker changed her mind, Geller explained that it was her “passion” and a way to “jump into the world.”
“She knew what the world was and the way,” the “Cruel Intentions” star said on the “Shut Up, Evan” podcast in January. “And that was the first time I said, ‘Maybe I could do this?’ And this went on for three years…Me and Chloe went back and forth saying we could and saying we couldn’t, and we really spent time developing what it was and why it was.”
After Ryan Keira Armstrong was announced in May as the project’s leader and Buffy’s right-hand vampire slayer, fans were hoping this vision would come to fruition.
And this summer, Gellar was spotted on set in the fictional town of Sunnydale.
In June, Gellar hinted at a big “Buffy” reunion that could take place in a revival.
“It’s going to be lighter than the last few seasons of the original,” she told Vanity Fair at the time. “We try to find a balance between new and old characters.”
“My dream is to bring all the dead back to life, but we also have to make space for new stories,” Geller added.
The original Geller, created by Joss Whedon, also starred Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris), Alyson Hannigan (Willow Rosenberg), Anthony Head (Rupert Giles), James Marsters (Spike), and David Boreanaz (Angel).
