Dolly Parton and Sarah Michelle Gellar in “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”.Photo:Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic; Getty
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic; Getty
Dolly Partonsays all hope is not lost forBuffy the Vampire Slayerreboot.
The country superstar — who was an uncredited producer on the original series through her company Sandollar Entertainment — revealed that a reboot of the supernatural drama series is still in the works after it was initially put on the backburner in 2022.
“They’re still working on that,” Parton, 78, toldBusiness Insiderof the reboot. “They’re thinking about bringing it back and revamping it."
Dolly Parton attends Dolly Parton’s Rockstar VIP Album Release Party with American Greetings on November 16, 2023.Jason Kempin/Getty
Jason Kempin/Getty
Parton noted that she was “very involved” behind the scenes of the original series, despite living in Nashville while the show was filmed in Los Angeles.
“A lot of my work was done just conversing back and forth with the business people there,” she explained.
“I have to give more people more credit onBuffy the Vampire Slayerthan me. A lot of people did so much sweat on that,” she continued. “That little show did great.”
Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s James Marsters, Anthony Stewart Head, Michelle Trachtenberg and Sarah Michelle Gellar.20th Century Fox Television/Kobal/Shutterstock
20th Century Fox Television/Kobal/Shutterstock
Original series leadSarah Michelle Gellaralso confirmed the “Jolene” singer’s involvement in a February 2023 appearance onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, saying, “Yes, little-known fact. The legend Dolly Parton was a producer.”
“We never saw her [but] we’d get Christmas gifts in the beginning that would have our name, and I would think, ‘She doesn’t even know who I am,’” she added. “And then one day, someone asked her about it, and she complimented the show and my performance. I was like, ‘Oh, I can die now. Dolly Parton knows who I am and thinks I’m good.’”
A revival of the beloved serieswas first announcedin July 2018 withJoss Whedonattached as an executive producer. He previously wrote the 1992 film and created the beloved WB series of the same name that ran for 7 seasons from 1997 to 2003.
A network was not attached at the time of the announcement. However, Monica Owusu-Breen, who worked with Whedon onAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,was set to serve as showrunner and head writer. The series was also set to star a Black actress in the lead role, but Owusu-Breen clarified: “There is only one Buffy.”
Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Sarah Michelle Gellar.20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection
“They can’t be replaced. Joss Whedon’s brilliant and beautiful series can’t be replicated. I wouldn’t try to,” shewroteon X (formerly known as Twitter) in July 2018. “But here we are, twenty years later… And the world seems a lot scarier. So maybe, it could be time to meet a new slayer.”
Last year, Gellar, 46, shared that she was not interested in reprising the titular role, tellingSFX MagazineviaMovieweb, “I am very proud of the show that we created and it doesn’t need to be done. We wrapped that up.”
“I am all for them continuing the story, because there’s the story of female empowerment,” she continued. “I love the way the show was left: ‘Every girl who has the power can have the power.’ It’s set up perfectly for someone else to have the power.”
“But like I said, the metaphors of ‘Buffy’ were the horrors of adolescence. I think I look young, but I am not an adolescent,” she added.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Buffy the Vampire Slayercan be streamed in full on Hulu.
source: people.com
