B Movies Blog

Hello, Movie Mavens! Welcome back to the B Movies Blog. Today, we’re popping a new series/the animated Buffy the Vampire Slayer series into the ol’ VCR.

Okay, I’d officially like to submit a new series to the Midnight Society for approval: Perished Pilots, a series where we talk about all the shows that never were. 

And friends, I have a great inaugural entry for you. 

I haven’t been shy about the fact that I grew up watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a kid, and there are still lines my sister and I quote from it to this very day. 

However, I only recently discovered the animated Buffy the Vampire Slayer series that almost was, and we need to talk about it. 

But before we dive in, I need to give a brief disclaimer. 

Joss Whedon is trash, and I don’t condone any of his (alleged) actions. 

I’m only mentioning him here is because the cast said they wouldn’t return to Buffy without Joss Whedon, but most, if not all, of the cast have since condemned him based on all of the things he (allegedly) did. 

As we all know, a Buffy reboot is underway without his involvement, and I can’t wait to see how it turns out. 

Moving on. 

Work on the animated series began in 2001, and the entire cast, except for Sarah Michelle Gellar, had signed on, with Buffy being voiced by Giselle Loren, who had previously voiced the character in other media. 

The original plan was to release the series on Fox Kids*, but when Fox Kids was dissolved, Fox was unable to find another home for it. 

*Note: We’re definitely doing a piece on Fox Kids soon because I forgot how unhinged their programming was. 

Three years later, Fox discussed reviving the series, and a pilot was produced to shop the show to other networks. 

Unfortunately, other studios believed it was too adult for children’s programming, but also couldn’t hold its own with older audiences, so it was never picked up. 

Then, in 2005, Joss Whedon (barf) said the series was officially done for. 

According to an interview with Jeph Loeb in 2009, all of the materials from the series were still in existence, so, in theory, the show could resume production at any time. 

However, as I mentioned earlier, in 2017, the cast said that returning for any reboots or spinoffs would depend on Joss Whedon, who publicly squashed any hopes for new Buffy series when he stated that he was done with Buffy. 

So, it seems like the animated series is dead for the foreseeable future. 

But, Joss Whedon out of the picture, and a reboot on the way, I’m holding out some hope.