It was the news no fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer wanted to hear. Sarah Michelle Gellar herself broke it, taking to social media to reveal that Hulu had passed on the Buffy revival, which would have featured Ryan Kiera Armstrong as the new Slayer, Nova. There had been rumblings for some time that Hulu was unhappy with Chloé Zhao’s pilot episode, and the streamer ultimately chose not to move forward with Buffy: New Sunnydale.
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We’ll likely never know the full story behind Hulu’s cancellation. Still, it leaves the entire Buffy franchise pretty much dead in the water; even comics and novels had stopped in the build-up to this new show, giving New Sunnydale as much room to maneuver as possible. So what’s next for Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Is there any way Disney and Hulu can relaunch this historic franchise?
A Buffy Revival is Still on the Cards – But There’s a Catch
This incarnation of Buffy the Vampire Slayer seems to be dead. That’s the sad truth, and it means Ryan Kiera Armstrong’s social media post may well be all we’ll ever see from the pilot. It’s a tremendous shame, because Armstrong has a bright future ahead of her after her tremendous performance in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Looking beyond Hulu’s disappointing decision, Deadline report that the streamer initially discussed reworking the pilot, but now “plans to regroup and mull a possible new incarnation of the beloved franchise.”
There is, however, one major problem facing this; Sarah Michelle Gellar herself. Gellar has rejected a Buffy revival for years. “I never heard a take or a reason to do it,” she explained just days before news broke about the cancellation. “Then Chloé Zhao came to me, and she had the reasons, and she had the take. Also, I was in a different place. The world was in a different place.” She initially said no to Zhao as well, only to be won over by her passion and her reasoning (which we will never know). Given this context, it’s entirely possible Gellar will not be willing to sign up for any other Buffy revival.
Assuming Gellar is still on board after this disappointment, Hulu could take two possible approaches. They could well commission a show that focused on Buffy herself once again, but this would be a nostalgia play, and franchises like Star Wars have amply demonstrated that nostalgia has diminishing returns. A better approach would be to mimic the New Sunnydale format, introducing a new Slayer who shared the spotlight with Gellar. That would ensure the revival was aimed at new viewers as well as old – but it would inevitably feel reductive after New Sunnydale‘s cancellation.
It’s Time to Bring Buffy Back in Other Mediums Too
Looking beyond the small screen, it really is time for Buffy to return in other mediums too. Whedon’s story continued in comic book form after the show ended in 2003, but the comics were eventually rebooted by Boom! Studios in 2018. Boom!’s comics were excellent, introducing a Slayerverse akin to the MCU’s multiverse, and using that as an opportunity to relaunch Buffy in the present day while eventually doing crossovers with the main timeline. It was a smart, “have your cake and eat it” strategy that likely couldn’t be imitated in live-action, where viewers really want to see Gellar back.
Sales presumably weren’t sustained, however, and Boom! allowed the license to lapse in late 2024. Since then, there have been no Buffy comics at all; the Slayerverse has essentially died. Sadly, the same has been true of a range of excellent novels that were published in the early 2020s, with the entire franchise going quiet. Most fans had assumed Disney had deprioritized Buffy in other mediums, leaving space for the revival.
The problem, of course, is that this now leaves Buffy in a very difficult place indeed. As iconic as the franchise may be, Buffy probably has the least presence now in its entire history. There have been no comics or novels for well over a year, only a single audiobook that focused on nostalgia. The revival has been cancelled, and will be difficult (perhaps impossible) to restart. It’s never looked quite so dark for the Slayer.
Hulu (& Disney) Need to Bring Buffy Back
The road ahead is not an easy one for Buffy. The fandom will likely have a “once bitten, twice shy” attitude when it comes to any further attempt at reviving the franchise; it’s much harder to get excited when a relaunch has a history of being cancelled. A strong pitch will help, but it will be difficult to go beyond the concept of a new Slayer, and Hulu may struggle to get Gellar back on board. The challenge, even then, would be winning new viewers as well as bringing back older ones.
If Buffy is to return, the franchise needs to do it in style, and it really needs to begin by increasing its presence once again. Disney would be wise to push Buffy novels and comics, perhaps even exploiting the multiverse idea from the Boom! era. Ironically, several of the novels published in the early 2020s showed just how easy it would be to hand over the mantle to a new Slayer, notably Kendare Blake’s tremendous Buffy: The Next Generation trilogy. A Slayerverse means these wouldn’t be considered canon, and wouldn’t cause problems for the revival.
Buffy: New Sunnydale‘s cancellation is undoubtedly devastating news for the fandom. But let’s face it; Buffy herself has died twice, and there’s no reason this particular death should be any more permanent. That said, there’s likely to be something of a wait now, simply because – whatever the mediums – it takes time to create.
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