Chloé Zhao ‘Not Surprised’ Her Buffy the Vampire Slayer Reboot Was Scrapped by Hulu

The director and mastermind of Hulu’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer continuation has said she’s “not surprised” the series has now been scrapped.

Talking to Variety last night on the Oscars red carpet, Academy Award winner Chloé Zhao said her priority had always been “to be truthful” to the original series and that “things happen for a reason.”

Sarah Michelle Gellar, the original Buffy star who was set to reprise her central character in the new series, shared word of Hulu’s decision with fans over the weekend, to an outpouring of shock and disappointment. Shortly after, various reports on the decision by Hulu suggested that differing opinions over the direction of the series between Zhao and the streamer were to blame.

Deadline sources have described the pilot as “not perfect” and suggested it was “Zhao’s sensibility” that may not have been the right match for the show at Hulu, without providing further explanation. For its part, meanwhile, Hulu is now reportedly considering a fresh reboot, or some other way to continue the franchise.

“I’m not surprised,” Zhao said, in her first comment on the now-scrapped project. “I had an incredible time with Sarah, with the whole cast and crew doing this and we, first and foremost, see ourselves as the guardians of the original show. Our priority has always been to be truthful to the show, and be truthful to our fans. So things happen for a reason and we keep our hearts open and welcome the mystery for what this may lead us to.”

When pressed on whether Zhao might pitch the series elsewhere, she simply repeated: “Welcome the mystery.” (This seems unlikely, since the Fox-owned property is currently being reconsidered by Hulu itself.)

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew actress Ryan Kiera Armstrong, who would have portrayed the series’ new young lead, has also offered her first comments on the show not moving forward, after being announced with some fanfare around a year ago. The actress also shared an image of her character, captioned with “<3 your slayer.”

“I’m sure many of you have already heard the news by now,” Armstrong said, thanking fans for supporting her and the show. “I’m really proud of what we did. I’m sad that you guys won’t be able to see it, but it doesn’t take away from the amazing experience that I had.”

Armstrong went on to thank Gellar, Zhao and the rest of her former castmates, before finishing on a more hopeful note. “I guess all I want to say is, we brought this back for you guys and Buffy is such a big part of all of our lives, and it’s not going anywhere. So, who knows what the future will hold.”

The new Buffy pilot episode was filmed last summer, when its production was widely reported on and pored over by fans for more details of its story and setting. Gellar was closely involved, after being tempted back to her cult classic role by Zhao’s vision for the continuation. Still, it was reported that she had only filmed a brief and mysterious cameo for the pilot, with her character set to feature more in future episodes — which now will not be made.

Hulu had previously planned to air the series later in 2026, though further word on its development had been ominously quiet in recent months. Still, in January, Gellar spoke out to reassure fans that the wait was simply down to the series’ creative team working to ensure it was good enough to not “sully the legacy” of the original beloved show.

IGN previously spoke with original Buffy the Vampire Slayer actress Charisma Carpenter about the new series, who told us that she was “hopeful” for a New Sunnydale return after an “unjust” end to her character Cordelia.

Image credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social