For Buffy fans, it seemed like a match made in heaven, right? A multi-Oscar-nominated director and the return of Sarah Michelle Gellar in a revival of one of the biggest TV shows of all time. Unfortunately, not everyone believes it will work. Hulu has just shut down the chance to bring back Buffy Summers for a Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival.
The bad news comes from Sarah Michelle Gellar herself, who confirmed on Instagram that the planned sequel series Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale will not move forward.
For many, the announcement will probably be a huge surprise, especially since the series had already reached the expensive part of development. Director Chloé Zhao had reportedly shot a 90-minute pilot episode, which, when you think about it, is basically a movie. That should give you an indication on how much Hulu was willing to put into the project.
And then… just like that… they pulled the plug.
“I am really sad to have to share this, but I wanted you all to hear it from me. Unfortunately, Hulu has decided not to move forward with Buffy: New Sunnydale,” Gellar said in a video posted to Instagram. “I want to thank Chloé Zhao, because I never thought I would find myself back in Buffy’s stylish yet affordable boots. And thanks to Chloé, I was reminded how much I love her and how much she means not only to me but to all of you. And this doesn’t change any of that, and I promise if the apocalypse actually comes, you can still beep me.”
Hulu ordered the pilot in February 2025 with Zhao attached to direct and executive produce. Unfortunately, now we might never see what she created. The filmmaker has two Oscar nominations and won Best Director and Best Picture for Nomadland in 2021. She’s also been a longtime Buffy fan, which made it all seem like the perfect fit.
Sources told Deadline the pilot “was not perfect,” and Hulu debated on whether they should rework it. Well, we know what the result of that conversation was. But in decisions like these, it feels strange that the show wasn’t at least tested with fans of the cult classic show. Surely, their opinions on whether or not it works matter too. This was the frustration with Warner Bros’ Batgirl, which many fans would still love to see – despite the studio calling it a disaster.
What was most concerning to those who enjoyed the original show was the absence of creator Joss Whedon (who had no involvement with the revival whatsoever). If you remember, Whedon wrote the 1992 Buffy the Vampire Slayer film starring Kristy Swanson and then later launched the TV series on The WB in 1997. The show ran seven seasons and turned Gellar, Eliza Dushku, Alyson Hannigan, David Boreanaz, Anthony Stewart Head and James Marsters into stars.
But as we know, Whedon has not worked in Hollywood since 2021, after multiple misconduct allegations surfaced and the mess that was Justice League. So there was no chance he would get to touch anything related to this new series.
Even with this reboot now shelved, some believe Hulu still has a strong interest in Buffy. Whether or not they give this another shot remains to be seen. But it’s fairly hard to believe that Chloé Zhao created a Buffy TV series that didn’t work. That’s the equivalent of saying Christopher Nolan made a TV series about time that nobody liked. It just doesn’t add up.
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