Before Joss Whedon was a geek god and one of the most in-demand directors in Hollywood, he created Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a show on the WB about a teenage girl who was chosen and given the power to save the world from vampires, demons, and the impending apocalypse. The show eventually became a cultural phenomenon and is considered one of the greatest cult hits in television history. With its quick wit, silly but endearing special effects, and very ’90s fashion, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is as much a time capsule as it is a television show.
Part of what makes Buffy so great is the top-notch cast of main characters, specifically Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy and the rest of the “Scooby Gang.” They all went on to varying degrees of success after leaving the Whedonverse behind, so let’s take a look at what they’ve all been up to after Buffy saved the world a lot.
Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers)
Between Buffy, Cruel Intentions, and I Know What You Did Last Summer, Gellar was truly a ’90s teen queen. However, her post-Buffy career hasn’t quite measured up to its early promise. She was in The Grudge, which was successful, but also several little-seen indie dramas and thrillers, including Southland Tales, The Air I Breathe, Possession, and Veronika Decides to Die. She also starred in two television series, Ringer and The Crazy Ones, but both were unfortunately canceled after one season. While she may be waiting for her next great role, she’s still pretty busy being adorable with her husband, Freddie Prinze, Jr. and reenacting the iconic kiss from Cruel Intentions.
Anthony Head (Rupert Giles)
While the tweed-wearing Watcher is his most iconic role, Anthony Head has worked quite steadily since his Buffy days. It often seems that the BBC has about 20 British actors on retainer who pop up in everything, and Head is certainly one of those actors. He’s appeared on Doctor Who, Monarch of the Glen, Little Britain, Persuasion, and Merlin. He’s also been seen on the small screen stateside in Free Agents, Dancing on the Edge, NTSF:SD:SUV, Warehouse 13, and Galavant. He also replaced Pierce Brosnan as the centaur Chiron in Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters and appeared in the rom-com, Imagine Me & You. At last year’s Comic-Con, he and Gellar had a pretty cute reunion photo op, so here’s hoping they have something else for fans this year.
Alyson Hannigan (Willow Rosenberg)
Alyson Hannigan had one of the best post-Whedon careers of any of the Buffy crew, thanks to a little show called How I Met Your Mother. Hannigan appeared as Lily Aldrin for nine seasons of the popular sitcom. She starred in two more American Pie sequels after Buffy ended and had a guest role on Veronica Mars. She also has two adorable daughters with her husband, Alexis Denisof (Wesley Wyndam-Pryce from Buffy and Angel). Hannigan is taking her time finding her post-HIMYM project, but hopefully she will be back on fans’ screens soon.
Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris)
Since playing the Zeppo, Brendon has appeared in a handful of televisions shows, including Kitchen Confidential, Private Practice, and Criminal Minds. He’s stayed active in Buffy fandom, working the con circuit. Unfortunately, Brendon has also been in the news lately for allegedly getting drunk at conventions and allegedly destroying hotel rooms. Hopefully he will find the help he needs soon and go back to being a fan favorite.
David Boreanaz (Angel)
Although he left Sunnydale and his soulmate behind at the end of Buffy Season 3, David Boreanaz was still an active member of the Whedonverse. His spin-off, Angel, was a hit, running from 1999 until 2004. The following year, he joined the seemingly unstoppable Bones, as FBI agent, Seeley Booth (which doesn’t seem like a real name), who falls for the prickly scientist, Temperance Brennan, played by the less famous Deschanel sister. The show’s 11th season airs in the fall, so it seems like Angel has finally found some peace at last.
James Marsters (Spike)
Even though the divisive fan favorite seemingly died in the Buffy finale, Whedon chose to bring back the swaggering vampire for the final season of Angel. After his work in the Whedonverse, Marsters stayed on the geek radar, appearing on the Doctor Who spin-off, Torchwood, as Captain John Hart, sexually liberated time traveler and former partner of Captain Jack Harkness. He also had roles in Caprica, Smallville, Warehouse 13, Witches of East End, and Hawaii Five-0 and appeared in an episode of Supernatural alongside fellow Buffy alum, Charisma Carpenter.
Michelle Trachtenberg (Dawn Summers)
Although Dawn was no one’s favorite character, Michelle Trachtenberg has had a fairly successful career after Buffy. She starred in films like Eurotrip, Ice Princess, and 17 Again, and appeared in shows like Six Feet Under, Weeds, Mercy, and Robot Chicken. Her biggest role since was as Georgina Sparks, the baddest b*tch in Manhattan, on The CW’s hit show, Gossip Girl.
Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase)
Cordelia ended up continuing to fight the forces of evil alongside Angel, with Carpenter appearing on the spin-off in a series regular role. She also appeared on Charmed, Veronica Mars, Greek, Supernatural, The Lying Game, and Sons of Anarchy. Most recently, Carpenter starred in a Fifty Shades of Grey ripoff from the people who brought audiences the Sharknado trilogy, so, uh, at least she’s getting paid?
Eliza Dushku (Faith Lehane)
Dushku’s Faith was always a pretty alienating character in the Buffyverse; some fans loved her toughness, while others found her grating. Either way, Joss Whedon clearly liked her work, as she appeared on Angel, and had her star in his show Dollhouse, which had a seriously underrated two-season run. She was also the titular Tru on the show Tru Calling. It’s probably only a matter of time before she appears in another Whedon production. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., perhaps?
Seth Green (Oz Osbourne)
After his time as Willow’s first and last boyfriend, Seth Green went on to have a successful Hollywood career. He was in films like America’s Sweethearts, Rat Race, Without a Paddle, The Italian Job, Party Monster, and Austin Powers in Goldmember. However, he’s probably best known for his extensive voice work. Green is one of the creators and stars of Robot Chicken, and is Chris Griffin on Family Guy. He’s also lent his voice to The Cleveland Show, American Dad!, Phineas and Ferb, Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H., and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Now, let’s all forget that Dads ever happened.
Emma Caulfield (Anya Jenkins)
I am still not over Anya’s death. Sure, Whedon has killed many fan favorites over the years, but this one just felt cruel. Anyway, Caulfield has kept a pretty low profile since her Buffy days, doing guest appearances on shows like Monk, Life Unexpected, Prime Suspect, and Royal Pains. She also had a YouTube advice channel called ESSNEMMA and starred in the underrated indie rom-com TiMER. Speaking of cruel Whedon deaths…
Amber Benson (Tara Maclay)
Amber Benson’s Tara was easily the kindest Scooby, and Willow was never quite the same after her untimely death. After her time in Sunnydale, Benson popped up on a few television shows, including Cold Case, Private Practice, Grey’s Anatomy, and Supernatural. Benson has also directed three films and written several novels. She previously dated fellow Buffy alum Adam Busch, who played Warren Mears. Yes. That Warren.
Danny Strong (Jonathan Levinson)
Do you remember the Jonathan-centric episode of Buffy, “Superstar”? Because that’s kind of how things ended up for Danny Strong. He had roles on Gilmore Girls (Paris and Doyle 4ever), Mad Men, and Justified, but his biggest accomplishments have been in writing and producing. He wrote and produced Lee Daniels’ The Butler, won two Emmys for writing and producing the HBO original Game Change, and co-created the wildly popular show Empire. Oh, and he also wrote the final two installments of The Hunger Games series, Mockingjay: Part One and Part Two.
And for more you may have missed on the web…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNZhn9953L4
