Sarah Michelle Gellar Reveals What Really Happened With Hulu’s ‘Buffy: New Sunnydale’ Reboot

So what really happened with the planned “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” reboot over at Hulu? It was Sarah Michelle Gellar who had originally announced over the weekend that the streamer is not moving forward with the reboot series, subtitled “New Sunnydale,” which was to star Sarah Michelle Gellar and be directed by Hamnet filmmaker Chloé Zhao.

“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,” the actress said in a video.

Sarah Michelle Gellar added, “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.”

Chloé Zhao later shared her own thoughts on Hulu axing the planned “Buffy: New Sunnydale” series in a chat with Variety on the Academy Awards red carpet over the weekend.

“Not surprised,” Chloé Zhao responded when asked about the news. “I had an incredible, incredible time with Sarah [Michelle Gellar], with all the cast and crew doing this. And we, first and foremost, see ourselves as the guardians of the original show. Our priority for Sarah and for us has always been to be truthful to the show, to be truthful to our fans.”

Zhao continued, “So, things happen for a reason, and we keep our hearts open and we welcome the mystery. And what this might lead us to.”

But the one thing these statements don’t address is the WHY of it all. Why did Hulu suddenly pull the plug on what seemed like a no-brainer reboot of a beloved and iconic series? And had the pilot episode already been filmed before the decision was made? Those questions are (mostly) answered in new comments from Sarah Michelle Gellar as well as a report from Deadline.

First, Sarah Michelle Gellar has given a new interview to PEOPLE that pretty directly points the finger at one Hulu executive who maybe never wanted to make the reboot in the first place.

The actress tells PEOPLE, “No one saw this coming, including the head of Searchlight [Pictures]. And I got the call as we were stepping onto stage for the premiere of their own movie [Ready or Not 2: Here I Come]. And it’s also the weekend of Chloé going to the Oscars as a best director nominee for Hamnet. For them to call us on the Friday of what should have been Chloé’s victory lap for an incredible film, and my world premiere of something that I worked very hard for is… That says something.”

Gellar continues, “We had an executive on our show who was not only not a fan of the original, but was proud to constantly remind us that he had never seen the entirety of the series and how it wasn’t for him. That’s very hard when you’re taking a property that is as beloved as Buffy, not just to the world, but to me and Chloé. So that tells you the uphill battle that we had been fighting since day one, when your executive is literally proud to tell you that he didn’t watch it.”

What we do know is that a pilot episode for “Buffy: New Sunnydale” was filmed, with Chloé Zhao directing, but it seems that iteration of the pilot was heavily retooled with a rewrite that was never able to find its way in front of the cameras. Gellar notes of the project and its construction as a reboot and a sequel, “I loved the duality that we had this new, younger slayer who was where Buffy was when the show started, and then we would pick up with where Buffy was now.”

According to Deadline’s report this week, the rescripted pilot – they call it a “well-received rewrite” – was to feature much more of Buffy Summers than the original incarnation of the episode.

Deadline explains, “After the pilot was completed and delivered, according to multiple sources, Hulu’s main note was that it played too young, with some indicating that the streamer also felt the show was too small.”

The outlet details, “After feedback from the streamer that the pilot did not take big enough swings, [Nora and Lilla Zuckerman] set out to do a rewrite to address the notes, sources said.”

“I hear the new script was 90 minutes,” the report adds. “It was more adult, featuring a lot more of Gellar’s Buffy, and was described as a more of a streaming than a network show.”

That rewritten pilot episode, unfortunately, never ended up being filmed. Deadline notes, “Some say Hulu suggested that the rewritten version of the project was too expensive to shoot. Others indicate that it still fell short of the high bar set by the original series.”

Will we ever see the version of the “Buffy: New Sunnydale” pilot that WAS filmed? At this time, it seems likely that it may never see the light of day. Stay tuned for more as we learn it.