Cue the iconic Nerf Herder guitar riff—Buffy the Vampire Slayer is making a comeback. Hulu is currently developing a follow-up to the beloved cult series, with original star Sarah Michelle Gellar on board.
The new project, helmed by writers Nora and Lilla Zuckerman (Poker Face, Fringe), is being produced by 20th Television and is described as “the next chapter in the Buffyverse.” Academy Award-winning director Chloé Zhao (Nomadland, Eternals) is set to direct.
Insiders indicate that the new iteration of Buffy will center around a younger Slayer, with Gellar’s Buffy Summers not serving as the focal point.
While the original series established that only one Slayer could exist at a time, its final season defied that rule by awakening hundreds of potential Slayers as part of its endgame.
Gellar, who is currently starring in Showtime’s Dexter: Original Sin, had previously expressed disinterest in revisiting Buffy. However, in a December interview, she revealed a change of heart: “I always used to say no, because it’s in its bubble, and it’s so perfect,” she shared during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show.
“But watching Sex and the City [sequel And Just Like That] and seeing Dexter, and realizing there are ways to do it, definitely does get your mind thinking, ‘Well, maybe.’”
Buffy The Vampire Slayer (Photo: 20th Century Studios)This marks the second attempt in recent years to revive Buffy under 20th Television. In 2018, the studio—which produced the original WB/UPN series—worked on a reboot with writer Monica Owusu-Breen and series creator Joss Whedon, but the project never moved past the development phase.
Whedon, who has faced allegations of mistreating actors on Buffy, its spinoff Angel, and the Justice League film, is not involved in the new Hulu series.
The upcoming reboot will see Nora and Lilla Zuckerman serving as executive producers alongside Zhao, Gellar, and original Buffy executive producers Gail Berman, Fran and Kaz Kuzui of Suite B, and Dolly Parton via Sandollar.
While Parton was not credited as an executive producer on the original series, her company, Sandollar Television, played a key role in its production.
Nora and Lilla Zuckerman are represented by UTA and Lichter Grossman. Zhao is represented by CAA, Lichter Grossman, and Ilene Feldman Management.
Gellar is represented by CAA, Linden Entertainment, and Yorn Levine. Berman and her company, The Jackal Group, are represented by Sam Fischer at Ziffren Brittenham.