In recent years, one of the most important shows of its era, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has been the subject of intense scrutiny since the show’s creator, Joss Whedon, has been accused of “toxic” behavior on set on multiple occasions. During a recent roundtable discussion at the Power of Women Summit, organized by The Wrap, series actor Sarah Michelle Gellar made a public allusion to the behind-the-scenes issues that were going on. While participating in The Power of Storytelling: Producers Roundtable, the actress brought up Buffy, but she did not specifically name the show or Whedon in any of her comments.
“Now that I’ve had this opportunity to work with so many more women and men that support women as well, I realized how easy of an experience it can be,” she continued. “It’s not just women who are supportive of other women.” “Unfortunately, we are still in the position where all of those departments, a lot of the time, need to be women for us to have a voice.”
“Now that I’ve had this opportunity to work with so many more women and men that support women as well, I realized how easy of an experience it can be,” she continued. “It’s not just women who are supportive of other women.” “Unfortunately, we are still in the position where all of those departments, a lot of the time, need to be women for us to have a voice.”
Last year, reports of Whedon’s behavior behind the scenes of Buffy and its spin-off series, Angel,__ burst into public views. Gellar’s co-star, Charisma Carpenter, posted a lengthy statement on social media detailing her negative experiences with the creator. Carpenter wrote in her complaint that Whedon called her “fat” while she was pregnant with her son, and that he regularly “pitted people against one another to compete and vie for his attention and approval.” “Joss Whedon abused his power on numerous occasions while working together on the sets of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel,” Carpenter stated in her complaint.
The news about Buffy came after Ray Fisher made his own complaints about Joss Whedon’s “inappropriate” behavior on the set of 2017’s Justice League, the all-star DC team-up movie that Whedon took over as director after the film’s original director, Zack Snyder, abandoned the project. Carpenter revealed in her statement that she was questioned as part of the investigation that was subsequently conducted by Warner Bros. This investigation ultimately resulted in Whedon leaving his HBO series, The Nevers.
Following the disclosures made by Carpenter, Gellar took to Instagram to make a statement in which she distanced herself from Whedon. Gellar stated, “While I am proud to have my name linked with Buffy Summers, I do not want to be permanently associated with the name Joss Whedon,” and she added, “I will not be making any additional statements at this time.”
Whedon gave his first major interview since the allegations regarding Buffy were made public in the beginning of this year. The interview took place with New York magazine. In response to Carpenter’s assertion, the writer and director denied calling her “fat,” but he did concede that he wasn’t always “mannerly” with her. Whedon has stated that the majority of his interactions with Charisma have been lovely and charming. However, he spoke very little to nothing about his previous or present relationship with Gellar, which suggests that they are continuing to disassociate themselves from one another.