The toxic culture of many movie and TV show productions in the 1990s and early 2000s has been a talking point for several years. One of the shows that seemed to harbor many issues wasBuffy the Vampire Slayer, with many stars speaking out against the on-set actions of creator Joss Whedon in particular. In a recent discussion forThe Wrap’s “Power of Storytelling: Producers Roundtable,”BuffystarSarah Michelle Gellardoubled down on the claims of the “toxic” environment the show was filmed in and how it all seemed to revolve around a male-dominated hierarchy that women could not be “powerful” in. She said:
“For so long, I was on a set that I think was known for being an extremely toxic male set, and so that was ingrained in my head that that was what all sets were like, and that women were pitted against each other – that if women became friends, then we became too powerful, so you had to keep that down. And now that I’ve had this opportunity to work with so many more women and men that support women as well, I realized how easy an experience it can be, but … unfortunately we’re still in that place where all of those departments a lot of times need to be women for us to have a voice.”
Stories of abuses of power on the set ofBuffyare nothing new, with stars such as Charisma Carpenter being just one of the actresses who previously spoke out against Whedon, saying he “abused his power” throughout the production of both Buffy and the spin-off showAngel. Other reports went on to say that some of the show’s young stars did not feel safe being left alone with Whedon, while the likes of Anthony Stewart Head also supported Carpenter in her claims.
Related:Sarah Michelle Gellar Addresses Why She Didn’t Share Her Joss Whedon Experiences
WillBuffy the Vampire SlayerEver Return To Screens?
As a series that comes with the tagline of “Into every generation a slayer is born,”Buffy the Vampire Slayerappeared to have built a long-term fail-safe that would allow the series to constantly change its lead star without having to do much explaining. However, since the series ended in 2003, there have beenmultiple failed attempts to bring back the franchise, the most recent only being in the last couple of years.
In August this year, it was revealed that the latest possible reboot of the series had been put “on pause,” and once again, the return of Buffy seems to be one of those things that is destined not to happen. However, with the franchise having passed into the hands of Disney following their Fox merger, it is surely only a matter of time before the House of Mouse takes a shot at developing a new series from the IP for their expanding Disney+ platform. For now, all seven seasons of the originalBuffy the Vampire Slayerseries can be found on Hulu in the U.S. and on Disney+ internationally, while Sarah Michelle Gellar returns to the fantasy genre inWolf Packin 2023.
