The updates on the forthcoming “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” reboot have been trickling in throughout 2025, so much so that even the slightest inkling of progress sends fans into a frenzy. Buffy herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar, clearly understands this better than anybody, so I’m sure she knew exactly what she was doing when she posted a video to Instagram on August 3 working out with Ryan Kiera Armstrong, the actress tapped to lead Hulu‘s “Buffy” revamp.
Gellar’s caption didn’t reveal much, saying simply, “Warrior 1 and 2 We don’t sweat … we sparkle.”
Armstrong, 15, is meant to be a new character in the “Buffy” universe, and Gellar herself — of course — is tapped to a return as Buffy Summers. The casting materials in May (via Deadline) described Armstrong’s character “as an introverted high-school student.”
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“From the moment I saw Ryan’s audition, I knew there was only one girl that I wanted by my side,” Gellar said. “To have that kind of emotional intelligence, and talent, at such a young age is truly a gift. The bonus is that her smile lights up even the darkest room.”
Gellar was also a gifted young actress when she took on the role of Buffy Summers in 1997. She was a little bit older than Armstrong, turning 20 the year (now-defunct) The WB series hit the air, but she was already a veteran performer. In 1995, she won a Daytime Emmy for her turn as Kendall Hart — the iconic Erica Kane’s (Susan Lucci) daughter — on “All My Children.”
Gellar spoke with Vanity Fair Italia (translation courtesy of VF) in June about the “Buffy” comeback… a comeback which she herself was previously opposed.
“For so many years, I said no to a possible return of the series,” Gellar said. “I didn’t want to reintroduce something we had already seen. I waited for the right time to come. Then [director Chloé Zhao], a big ‘Buffy’ fan, proposed the project to me, and I accepted. The gestation was long. It’s been three years, and we’re still working on it.”
She teased that the tone would be lighter than where the original “Buffy” landed in its final few seasons, which aired on (the also-now-defunct) UPN after a network switch. She also wants to see a lot of comebacks from the original cast. “We will try to find a balance between new and old characters,” she said. “My dream is to bring back everyone who has died, but space will have to be made for new stories as well.”
In June, Gellar told Parade that the series would pay homage to the late Michelle Trachtenberg, who played her sister Dawn from 2000-2003. “We’ll be able to do something,” Gellar said. “We’ll do what’s appropriate.”
Right now, it’s just a pilot order for the reboot — and clearly filming is neigh, given Gellar and Armstrong’s training video. With the original series’ large fanbase and Gellar’s involvement, however, its tough to see a world where this doesn’t raise “Buffy” from the dead.
