Buffy the Vampire Slayer is coming back to TV screens in a reboot from the makers of Poker Face and Oscar winner Chloé Zhao. Sarah Michelle Gellar will return as Buffy Summers, but what about the rest of the cast of the original Buffy? No shade toward Gellar (we adore her), but Buffy‘s stellar ensemble cast made the show great. Here’s are the characters we think need to make an appearance and be apart of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer sequel reboot series.
Note: We did not include any dead characters from the series, for the most part. We feel like the deaths of characters like Joyce Summers, Anya, and Tara should be respected and not undone in any way. We do have one exception to that rule, but you’ll have to read to the end for that one. Now, on to the Buffy characters we hope to make a comeback for the new Hulu reboot.
Willow Rosenberg (Alyson Hannigan)
Willow Rosenberg has been Buffy Summers’ ride-or-die bestie since the very first episode of the original series in 1997. Well, except for that one time she tried to end the world and she and Buffy threw down. (But we’ll just forget all that for now.) If there’s any one character fans would want to see most in a reboot, we imagine it would be Alyson Hannigan’s Supreme Sapphic Witch. Willow must have grown even more powerful when it comes to magic in the decades since the original series ended. And we’re dying to see her return in full Elphaba strength. Of all the characters fans would revolt over the most if she never appeared in some capacity, we think it would be Willow Rosenberg.
Rupert Giles (Anthony Stewart Head)
Rupert Giles was Buffy’s Watcher and mentor for most of the original series run. Technically, the stuffy British librarian quit during the show’s sixth season. Yet he always came back around whenever his Slayer needed him most. If Buffy no longer needed a Watcher after season five, she definitely doesn’t need one in her middle age. But we can’t imagine Anthony Stewart Head being totally absent from any kind of Buffy continuation. Let’s say the new series features Buffy mentoring new Slayers (a likely scenario). She’d probably call her old mentor and father figure for assistance at least once. We must admit, we’ll get emotional when we see Rupert get flustered, take his glasses off, and clean them again all while being exasperated at the youth’s slang and music preferences.
Xander Harris (Nicholas Brendon)
In the years since Buffy ended, her best male buddy, Xander Harris, has become a controversial figure. Maybe because much of his toxic male behavior, often played for laughs, is no longer seen as cute and funny. Still, Xander fought by Buffy’s side for the entire run of the classic show. Not to mention, he even lost an eye in battle fighting on Team Slayer. In the post-series comics, he married Buffy’s sister Dawn. We doubt the new show would go that route, but you never know. We should note, that actor Nicholas Brendon has led a very troubled life since Buffy ended. He’s had many run-ins with the law over domestic abuse, among other personal problems. Some fans might not want him to return for that reason alone, and we acknowledge that. But we’d be remiss not to mention the fourth member of Buffy’s “Core Four.”
Angel (David Boreanaz)
One of the most important characters in all of Buffy lore is the Slayer’s first love Angel, the vampire with a soul. Played by David Boreanaz for the show’s first three seasons, then in his own spin-off series that lasted another five years, Angel and Buffy’s tortured love affair was the source of much angst, drama, and teary speeches from Sarah Michelle Gellar. David Boreanaz has gone on to a legendary TV career, essentially going from Angel to Bones for 12 seasons, then straight from Bones to SEAL Team for another seven years. This guy has literally been on TV for 25 years straight. He’s like the male Betty White.
The question remains if he be willing to reprise the role that made him a star. He and Sarah Michelle Gellar remain friends to this day, so we can imagine he would say yes if she asked. Of course, there is one big hurdle with Boreanaz returning as Angel. As a vampire, Angel simply doesn’t age. And as a regular human, Boreanaz obviously has. Good-looking daddy type or not, he can’t pull off “Forever 25” anymore. Sure, there’s digital de-aging tech. But that often looks funky. Maybe the prophecy from his own series came true, and Angel became human? It would be fun to see how they’d pull this off. It’s hard to imagine a Buffy reboot with no appearance by her one true love.
Spike (James Marsters)
On the subject of “vampires with souls,” James Marsters as Spike is perhaps the character with the greatest arc in the original series. Appearing in five seasons of Buffy and one of Angel, the bleached blonde “William the Bloody” went from a murderous villain, to an annoying sidekick, to a sexy and twisted love interest, to a heroic vampire surpassing Angel. We simply can’t imagine Buffy without him. Like David Boreanaz, Marsters would have to undergo serious digital de-aging to play Spike again, since he’s an immortal vampire. But we could see them pulling it off. Simply because Spike is just too important to leave out. Assuming the comics aren’t canon anymore, the last time Spike saw Buffy, she told him she loved him before he died saving the world (He got better on Angel.) There’s not a Buffy fan alive who doesn’t want to hear that reunion conversation.
Faith (Eliza Dushku)
For a lot of Buffy fans, the original show’s third season remains its crown jewel. A big part of the reason why is the story arc with Buffy’s fellow Slayer, Faith (Eliza Dushku). Halfway through season three, Faith turned to the dark side and became one of the show’s best villains. Buffy and Angel were eventually able to pull her back into the light over several more seasons, and she fought with Buffy against the First Evil in the series finale. We have no idea what became of Faith since then, outside of comics which may no longer be canon. (A spin-off was discussed for her at one point.) Would Eliza Dushku be willing to help “B,” as she teasingly called Buffy, train a new generation of Slayers characters in a reboot? We know a lot of fans would love to see Faith’s redemption arc continue in that specific way.
Cordelia Chase (Charisma Carpenter)
Ok, I know we said “no dead characters” for this Buffy character reboot list. But we feel Cordelia Chase is an exception to that rule. Why? For starters, Charisma Carpenter is an OG Buffy cast member, and Cordy was the best “mean girl turned hero” in TV history. For those reasons alone, we feel she deserves her flowers. Secondly, her “death” in the last season of Angel was, shall we say, somewhat dubious both for the character and the actor who played her. That episode did leave what we feel is a cracked door for her possible return, as Cordelia had become a “Higher Being” in earlier seasons of Angel. Her final appearance suggested she simply moved on from her corporeal form to a higher plane of existence… a higher plane she could always come back from. We want our fabulous Cordy back, looking stunning, and trading barbs with the Scoobies one more time.