Sarah Michelle Gellar: Why I quit ''Buffy.'' In an exclusive interview, the actress reveals the reasons her vamp-dusting days are over -- an excerpt from Entertainment Weekly's March 7, 2003, cover story by Jeff Jensen
PULLING UP STAKES After seven years as Buffy Summers, Gellar is ready to sink her teeth into other projects
''Buffy, in this incarnation, is over.''
With those words, Sarah Michelle Gellar drives a stake into the hearts of ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' fans everywhere. After seven years -- five on The WB, the last two on UPN -- the young ''Scooby-Doo'' star (a.k.a. Mrs. Freddie Prinze Jr.) is leaving the cult pop sensation that made her a household name. Says Dana Walden, president of Twentieth Century Fox Television, which owns ''Buffy'': ''It would be difficult to overemphasize Sarah's value to the show.'' Adds ''Buffy'' creator Joss Whedon: ''There've been times that we didn't get along. There have been times when we've palled around. But no matter what, she was the other half of 'Buffy.' In seven years, she never let me down.''
Gellar is moving on, but plans are afoot to keep the lucrative franchise alive. Whedon is developing a spin-off that may involve current ''Buffy'' regulars and will be pitched first to UPN. ''It will be a completely different animal,'' he says. The good news for fans: Gellar has promised to make occasional guest appearances on the spin-off. The bad news: The spin-off will not be based around sexy bad-girl slayer Faith, played by Eliza Dushku, who is committed to a Twentieth Century Fox pilot directed by Phillip Noyce.
''Buffy'' will end with a five-part story that will see the return of Faith, some surprise deaths, and in the final episode, an appearance by a certain Angel. ''We're gearing up to tell a fabulous, huge, great arc,'' says Gellar. ''It's going to be pretty spectacular.'' Gellar herself is girding for many tears during production of the last episode. It was tough enough for her to keep a dry eye during this, her first exit interview. Popping chocolate-covered raisins as she spoke to EW in a trailer decorated with fan-drawn ''Scooby'' art, Gellar made us a bet: ''Ten bucks says I go home and cry when you leave.''
Gellar on Quitting ''Buffy''
ENTERTAINMENT WEEEKLY: Why now? Why is this the right time?
SARAH MICHELLE GELLAR I hope it is the right time. This is so weird. This is like the first time I've really said it. Joss and I always [said] from the beginning, as long as we can give 140 percent, we'd always be doing it.
You always worry about being the show that's been on too long -- especially when you're a cult hit. Last year, a lot of people were ready to tear us down. [So when] we started to have such a strong year this year, I thought, ''This is how I want to go out -- on top, at our best.'' I was 18 when I started the show; I'm 26. I'm married. I never see my husband. This has been the longest span of my life in one place. There've been times where that's been difficult -- you want to pick up and go, try other things, live in different places. It feels right, and you have to listen to that. The show, as we know it, is over.
Why do you say ''as we know it''?
I know they are planning a spin-off, and I would love to come back [for some episodes] -- assuming, of course, that they don't kill [Buffy]. The moment I say all this, I'm going to get the last script and go, ''Oh, my God!'' Look, this is so scary. I love this job, I love the fans. I love telling the stories we tell. This isn't about leaving for a career in movies, or in theater -- it's more of a personal decision. I need a rest. Teachers get sabbaticals. Actors don't.
Gellar on Quitting ''Buffy''
SINGING THE BLUES Gellar and the cast in last season's moody musical episode
What was it like announcing your decision?
At the beginning of this season, Joss and I had a conversation outside my trailer. We both kind of felt that this was the end, that we should make that decision and say it publicly. And then...we didn't. We didn't even talk about it for a while... [But] the fact the show's been so good [this season] decided it for us. It was a realization that we all came to.
If the show had stronger ratings, and had received more mainstream acclaim -- as in Emmys -- would you have stayed?
No. Our show never had top 10 numbers, but everyone talked about it. Joss and I disagree on this. People are always, ''How sad are you that your show never won any awards?'' I think it's great! This is the cool show, the show the voters don't get. I've won an Emmy. Okay, it's a Daytime Emmy, but it's still an Emmy. It doesn't mean nearly as much to me as my Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Female Butt Kicker.
Was money an issue for you?
Money? No complaints. Never.
I'll be honest: ''Buffy'' on UPN has always seemed like an odd fit.
I knew this question was coming.
Do you feel the switch from The WB to UPN in 2001 hurt the show?
It was a hard transition. This is a hard question because UPN has been very supportive of the show. They gave us a home. But I will always have a loyalty and a very, very deep appreciation for the support that I felt at The WB. The WB and ''Buffy'' were synonymous. They made each other.
RUFF REVIEWS Gellar (left) with hubby Prinze (far right) in ''Doo,'' which critics called a dog of a movie
So now it's on to a big career as...Daphne in ''Scooby-Doo''?
[Laughs] I get a lot of '''Scooby-Doo'?! That's why you're leaving?'' ''Scooby-Doo'' was interesting. The reviews were scathing, and I took it really hard. [But] Freddie said to me, '''Scooby-Doo' isn't for reviewers. We're not making it for them.'' And when all these children came up to me to say, '''Scooby-Doo' is my favorite movie,'' that was great. But for a weird time in between, I took everything really personally.
Do you have a clear post-''Buffy'' plan for making it in the movies?
If I did, I'd write a book, cash in, and retire. My movie experience has shown me you can't plan.
''Simply Irresistible'' was a major flop. Do you have something to prove at the box office?
No. ''Simply Irresistible'' was [just] a bad choice -- and for that it was a great [learning] experience. I wasn't ready to make that movie. I was too young. The script was not ready. I knew in my heart before I left [to make it] that I should back out.
Have you ever had any fear that you would be trapped by your ''Buffy'' image?
Of course. You run that risk with anything you do. [But to] be greatly identified with anything is a mark of success. My biggest fear right now is that people will blame me for [ending] the show. People are going to think that it's my fault that their favorite show is going off the air. And God knows we're always looking for someone to blame.
Do you think people will hold it against you in a way that will hurt other things you want to do?
No, it's more personal than that. Less professional, more personal. I love the fans. We were a midseason replacement on The WB called ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer,'' based on a movie that was a flop. People were like, ''Don't worry, you'll get a pilot next season.'' People pitied me -- PITIED me. We couldn't pay directors to come here. Nobody wanted to be on our show. And look what happened.
Gellar on Quitting ''Buffy''
SLAY BELLE Buffy comes back from the dead -- the first time
Time for some exit interview questions. Has there always been a ''Buffy'' master plan?
Joss has had certain episodes planned from the get-go. I knew Dawn was coming two years in advance.... Willow was always supposed to go bad. Willow was supposed to go bad a year before she did, but Joss loved Tara and Willow, so that story line was pushed a year.... I honestly believe his original intention was to put Buffy and Xander together. I really do believe that.
Favorite episode?
I loved ''The Prom'' [season 3]. It stood for everything Buffy was about: the fact that she so badly wanted to be part of the other kids' lives. I think ''The Body'' [season 5, featuring the death of Buffy's mother] is pretty amazing. I loved the episode in which Buffy and Faith switched. That was one of my all-time favorites because I thought Eliza was so great. And also when Buffy realizes she has to kill Angel and she kills him and he comes back. Those are my favorites.
Least favorite episode?
I had trouble with the one [in the sixth season] where Buffy had sex with Spike on the balcony while watching their friends. I really thought that was out of character. And I didn't like what it stood for. That was the moment that I had the most problems with.
You've mentioned how much you disliked the sixth season. Why was that? And how did you feel about Buffy's depression, and her sexual obsession with Spike?
It wasn't who Buffy was, or why people loved her. You don't want to see that dark heroine; you don't want to see her punishing herself. You want to see her killing vampires and making quips. It didn't feel like the character that I loved.
Joss always explained that season as being about your 20s, where you're not a kid anymore, but you don't know what you want to do [with your life]. He always said that I didn't understand last year because I've always known what I wanted to do, and I didn't have that confusion, [that] dark, depressive period. But I think the heart of the show lies in the humor of the drama. I felt like Buffy's spirit was missing last year.
Gellar on Quitting ''Buffy''
HEADING OUT THE DOOR Gellar says she's still working on her exit plan
Who do you think was the best ''Buffy'' villain ever?
Angel. Angel and Spike.
Why?
There was so much heartbreak when Angel went bad. This is the love of her life and now her job was to kill him! That's heartbreaking. Not to mention the poor girl has sex for the first time and, you know, turned him bad. I've heard of turning [someone] gay, but...
So, how would you like the show and your work on it to be remembered?
I hope positively. One thing about the show was it was never categorized. It was drama, comedy, action, horror, all of those things combined. And I just want people to remember it as a fabulous run, a fabulous seven years.
Do you know what your last scene in the last episode will be?
I can't even imagine. All I can say is that I really hope I have the last line.... Even talking to you -- I don't know how I seem to you, I don't know if I seem once removed from it, [but] I don't think the enormity has hit me. (Additional reporting by Carrie Kravetz and Missy Schwartz)
Stake Out
Gellar explains why ''Buffy'' is over. In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, ''Vampire Slayer'' Sarah Michelle Gellar talks about the end of her series
SLAY OFF Gellar will call it quits
It's official: The end is near for UPN's cult hit ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer.'' After seven years, Sarah Michelle Gellar is leaving the series, which will conclude this season with a five-part story featuring the return of Faith, some surprise deaths, and an appearance by a certain Angel. ''We're gearing up to tell a fabulous, huge, great arc,'' Gellar tells EW. ''It's going to be pretty spectacular.''
But why leave now? ''You always worry about being the show that's been on too long -- especially when you're a cult hit,'' explains Gellar. ''Last year, a lot of people were ready to tear us down. [So when] we started to have such a strong year this year, I thought: 'This is how I want to go out -- on top, at our best.'''
To read Gellar's complete interview -- and get the latest news about a possible ''Buffy'' spin-off -- pick up the upcoming issue of Entertainment Weekly, available on newsstands Friday, Feb. 28.
OH SHOOT! Andrew's new role as Gang-member-with-a-purpose may be as shortlived as his life
It's safe to say that Andrew has redeemed himself. As the titular ''Storyteller'' in this week's ''Buffy'' episode, he gets to be both the narrator and the subject of the latest development in the march towards the ultimate battle. Reminiscent of Xander's star turn in ''The Zeppo,'' the side story takes center stage while the main action gets pushed off to the background.
Andrew's hilarious spin on the Slayer's activities -- complete with pretentious mispronunciation of ''vam-pire'' -- is exactly what you'd expect from this geeky misfit, making the video as much to entertain himself as to make himself feel like an important part of what's unfolding. The fact that he only spends about half the time focusing on Buffy and her struggle against evil and the rest examining the personal lives of those around him also fits his personality.
Despite Andrew's idealization of Buffy's beauty, a few details in his video are likely to fuel rumors that he's gay. There's the way he overlooks a lesbian make-out session to admire Xander's repair job on the frequently-broken window and the way he mouths along with Anya's side of the conversation while repeatedly viewing footage of her discussion with Xander about their enduring love. But it's hard to tell if all these hints lead to any actual character development, or if Andrew's sexual ambiguity will continue to be played for comedic effect.
Andrew's silly depictions of familiar characters (like the image of Andrew, Warren, and Jonathan living ''as gods'') and the ridiculous way he re-envisions history (like his own past as a ''super-villain'' and his run-in with Evil Willow) are entertaining enough to fill an entire episode. However, unlike Xander in ''The Zeppo,'' Andrew can't stay on the periphery of the action for long.
He tries, though. For instance, when Buffy is briefing the gang on her apocalyptic vision from last week's episode he steps out of the picture. He takes us aside to talk about himself, confiding, ''honestly, gentle viewers, these motivational speeches of hers tend to get a little long'' (a conclusion that many of us ''gentle viewers'' had already arrived at on our own). He even manages to sidestep the full horror of the current conflict while he attempts to record what has happened so far. His hilariously awkward description of the weakening seal on the Hellmouth, unearthed beneath the high school, is followed by the vague explanation, ''uh, due to some circumstances, it got opened, a little bit, recently.'' But slowly the episode reminds us what Andrew is glossing over: He played a big part in setting the current threat in motion. The impact of this realization is even stronger because he has us laughing about it a few moments earlier.
Ultimately, Andrew is called on to make it right. Maybe it's excessive for Buffy to convince him that she'd be willing to spill his blood in order to reseal the Seal. But that could be the shock he needs to make him stop turning everything into a page out of a fantasy role-playing game and face the reality that he helped create. Turns out that his honest tears of redemption are all that's needed to close the Seal, and that's what Buffy was aiming for all along. This gesture is so symbolic, it might be hokey if it weren't also so powerfully sincere. In the end, Andrew's inability to neatly wrap up his video is more moving than any narration he could provide. He earns the right -- at last -- to be a full-fledged member of the Scooby Gang. Unfortunately, he also figured out that he might not survive the experience.
What happened to the episode of ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' that was supposed to air last night? And why did the network air instead what seems like a reel of test footage from a script brainstorming session? At least the title, ''Get It Done,'' is appropriate, since the script is like an item on the writers' unfinished ''To Do'' list. Here are a few production notes to give them some direction during their next trip to the editing room:
Anya and Spike These two always had an affinity as they followed similar trajectories from human to monster to declawed demon and back to human (sort of). Now they're both trying to adjust to a human phase that, for once, they chose for themselves. The mutual experience of this challenge, which they could never begin to explain to their peers, has great potential as a story line. But the ''Anya trying awkwardly to seduce Spike'' angle has to go.
Kennedy and Willow Kennedy could be a great supporting character, so it's a waste to squander her with clich�d plotlines that portray her as a tough drill sergeant or show her waxing enthusiastic about Willow's powers (despite not even believing in magic until very recently). Kennedy is too smart to ignore the cautious warnings of EVERYONE who has ever known Willow, and too strong to be so surprised when she's burned by the physics of spell-casting.
Spike and The Coat When The Coat first appeared on ''Buffy,'' often sharing screen time with bleach-blond vampire Spike, it had a strong physical presence that helped win it a position in the regular cast of players. Recently it was on hiatus, but The Coat was bound to return because of its pivotal role as Principal Wood's Confirmation That Spike Killed His Mother. However, was it really necessary to recharacterize The Coat as Spike's totem of power? It's sad when one of the most dramatic scenes in the episode is about putting on outerwear.
It's all about...aw, forget it. While Buffy's new friends in vision-quest land are busy putting another nail in the coffin of the show by demystifying the Slayer mythology, she's crossing her legs to ward off their attempt to subject her to the ''Evil Dead'' treatment. Creepy, yes, and bound to have unpleasant consequences. Even so, they're offering her the power that she needs to defeat The First, and she rejects it -- not on the grounds that the offer is a trick, but because the sacrifice is too much to ask. Wait a minute. Buffy has given up her life in lesser fights, but suddenly her humanity is more precious than the survival of the rest of non-evil existence? After the many times we've been subjected to variations on her ''It's all about Power'' speech, this sudden reversal of priorities seems like poorly thought out back-pedaling.
Giles M.I.A. If this had been a first-rate episode, Giles would have been around to inspire everyone to use better judgment and to stay in character. Wouldn't he want to be there to help explain operations to Principal Wood, or to open the ancient Slayer relics, or to take part in a magic ritual to learn about the origins of the Slayer and the means to fight The First? No one even bothered to explain why he isn't there.
Sure, too many reruns can be frustrating. But I'd be happy to watch ''Selfless'' or ''Him'' again while ''Buffy'''s writers take the time to finish their new episodes. As to whether we can expect a better script next week, well, the previews make it look as if Andrew's shooting part of it -- and that could only be an improvement.