It’s been a very unpleasant few days Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans. First, Sarah Michelle Gellar reported that Buffy: The New Sunnydalethe Hulu reboot of his cult favorite series, was called. He followed suit, explaining why especially an executive he wasn’t particularly a fan of the original show.
On the Oscars red carpet, Chloé Zhao – a long time Buffy fan who is on board as an executive producer and directs New Sunnydale pilot –he said he was not surprised on cancellation.
Now a new report Diversity builds on the frustration by probing further into the causes New Sunnydale deadlocked. The original script for the pilot, written by Nora and Lilla Zuckerman, was apparently nothing more than a look at Gellar’s Buffy Summers, instead focusing on the new, younger Slayer character she plays. Skeleton CrewRyan Kiera Armstrong. Trade says it was reworked, but the pilot was still considered “unsalvageable” and “not good enough, in Hulu’s estimation, to turn things around.”
Earlier Wednesday, Gellar was on Sirius XM’s Page Six Radio (via The Hollywood Reporter) and advised Buffy fans no search script for pilot. “I saw a version of the script out there. It’s not really right. It’s really unfortunate, and I’m asking fans if you see the scripts — if you see them leaked — don’t watch it because you don’t understand our vision and all that.”
Hulu apparently also took issue with Zhao’s direction. Oscar winner (for Nomadland) and the last candidate (for Hamnet) also starred in the Marvel movie ForeverEspecially for Hulu and Marvel’s parent company Disney, it would be enough to check it out when dealing with a franchise so beloved by fans.
The Variety report cites sources as saying, “Zhao’s prodigious skills as a director didn’t lend themselves to a TV pilot that required a lot of exposure. It was pretty low-key and had no scope, so the pilot had to be reshot anyway. The performances of the actors playing the new characters must have impressed them.” contributed to the institution playing very young.
Projects end up in the pilot stage all the time, and you can understand why Hulu doesn’t want to disappoint the legions. Buffy leaving the reboot deemed “not good enough” by fans. However, there’s still more to the story, especially given Gellar’s appeal to an executive who doesn’t back the show (Gellar didn’t name him, but Variety notes that, as per Deadline’s previous report, it’s Hulu Originals head Craig Ervitch, who now oversees 20th Television and Anime).
Bridges were burned, in other words, Disney started doing damage control. A spokesperson told Variety, “We’ve had a long and very successful relationship with Chloé, Sarah and (executive producer) Gail (Berman) — their track record speaks for itself, and they’re incredible partners. Our decision not to move forward with a series order is a reflection of our respect and admiration for the No creative team and No creative staff, including Lilla.”
Variety also cited its sources as saying, “Hulu still hopes a new creative team can bring the revival to life in the future. But a source close to the show said the pilot process was no more difficult than starting any other TV show — although Hulu made it ‘more difficult’ and ultimately they didn’t have an idea of what they really wanted.”
Trade also notes that Hulu doesn’t seem inclined to allow it Buffy the Vampire Slayer The IP is running to another platform, so you can make that dream come true now. And rightfully so, Sarah Michelle Good luck getting Gels – the most important ingredient of any Buffy do-over — to agree to come back after all this.
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