The original cast of supernatural Nineties drama Buffy the Vampire Slayer are joining forces for a brand new Audible series.
James Marsters, Charisma Carpenter, Danny Strong, Emma Caulfield Ford, Amber Benson, Anthony Head, Juliet Landau and James Charles Leary are all set to reprise their roles in the upcoming audio series which will focus on Marsters’ character, Spike.
“I’m ecstatic to be back with my dear friends for this next chapter in the Buffyverse, as we take listeners on a familiar but unexpected journey chock full of horror, passion and mischief,” said Marsters. “I’m excited for old and new fans to experience this beloved world of vampire slaying like never before.”
The news has, predictably, thrilled fans who cannot wait to see the cast get back together, exactly two decades after the show was concluded.
“I’M DEAD !!!!” said one excited fan on Twitter. “The #BuffyTheVampireSlayer gurlies really Won with this news !!” said another.
The #BuffyTheVampireSlayer gurlies really Won🍾🥳with this news !! pic.twitter.com/lcujAYtCQS
— Janelle (@JanelleKendraa) September 13, 2023
Slayers: A Buffyverse Story, which is set to premiere on the online audio service October 12, picks up 10 years after the end of the TV show.
Vampire Spike has been living a double life, pretending that he is a villain once again. However, everything changes after he meets 16-year-old Indira Nunnally (Laya DeLeon Hayes) a young Slayer, as Spike feels the need to play protector once again. He starts searching for a Watcher (an order of people who are specially trained to supervise Slayers) for Indira which leads him into a parallel version of reality. In this world, Buffy never existed, and so his interactions with old friends and enemies take on brand new meanings.
The Audible original has been written by Benson, who played Tara Maclay in the TV show, alongside American horror and fantasy novelist Christopher Golden. The series has been directed by Benson, Golden, and writer Kc Wayland, whose credits include horror podcast We’re Alive: A Story of Survival.
Sarah Michelle Gellar, who starred as the titular character in the original series, will not be joining her old castmates in the new audio drama. The actor had been on a career break of sorts over the last decade, focusing her energy on raising her two children, but started to embark on something of a comeback last year.
“It’s such an interesting time for me,” she said in an interview with The Guardian in January. She had a role in the black comedy Do Revenge and in animated TV series Masters of the Universe: Revelation in 2022, and in 2023 she starred in, and executive produced, the Paramount+ supernatural drama Wolf Pack.
Slayers: A Buffyverse Story isn’t the first time the cast has reunited since the show’s 2003 conclusion. In 2019, 11 of the show’s stars including Carpenter, Hannigan and Marsters appeared together at the comic book convention Wizard World Portland. Gellar was not present for the event, which caused mixed reactions with fans.
“How do you have a reunion without Buffy?” commented one fan on a photo of the group on Instagram that had been shared by Nicholas Brendon (who played Xander).
“That’s cool everyone else showed but the main characters not being there kind of puts a hole in the cake,” said another.
