See What the Cast of ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ is Up to Now!

Misc

Dec 9, 2015 1:37 pm·

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Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers)

PROFESSIONAL: During her hiatuses on Buffy, Sarah starred in such films as I Know What You Did Last Summer, Scream 2, Cruel Intentions and the live action Scooby Doo. Post-series, she reprised her role of Daphne Blake in Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed and The Grudge (both released in 2004), followed by The Grudge 2 (2006), Southland Tales (2007), The Air I Breathe (2008) and Veronika Decides to Die (2009). In 2011 she returned to her television roots as twins in the CW's Ringer and 2013's The Crazy Ones, co-starring alongside the late Robin Williams. Most recently she joined the voice cast of Disney XD's Star Wars Rebels as the Seventh Sister.

PERSONAL: Sarah recently celebrated her 14th wedding anniversary with husband Freddie Prinze, Jr. Together they're parents to Charlotte Grace (born 2009) and Rocky James (born 2012). Beyond acting, Sarah spends a great deal of time working on a variety of charities, including Habitat for Humanity, CARE and Project Angel Food.

SARAH'S PASSIONS: “I will say that I have a love for comic books and cartoons,” she says. “You know, growing up I was a book lover and I collect antique books. You know us book lovers, we can be pretty snobby and be like, ‘Comic books? That’s not the same as holding a fifteenth century Chaucer,’ or whatever. But I’ve learned to have such a great love for comic books and cartoons." Regarding Buffy, on Reddit she noted, "I think for me the greatest message of Buffy was all about female empowerment, and not just female, but empowerment in general. High school is the scariest part of people's lives, and I loved that we used the monsters of Buffy as a metaphor for the monsters of life. And to not judge a book by its cover. That we are all capable of taking care of ourselves."

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David Boreanaz (Angel)

PROFESSIONAL: In the middle of Buffy's run, David found himself spun off to the Angel series, which ran until 2004. In between playing that vampiric part, he starred in the films Valentine (2001) and the TV movie I'm With Lucy (2002). Beginning in 2005 he began starring in Bones as FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth opposite Emily Deschanel's Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan. In 2006 he was seen in the films These Girls, Mr. Fix It and Suffering Man's Charity as well as the DVD films The Crow: Wicked Prayer and The Hard Easy. It was during that year that he voiced the character of Hal Jordan/Green Lantern in Justice League: New Frontier, based on the DC Comic of the same name. Things were quiet on the film front until 2011's The Mighty Macs, Officer Down and the miniseries Full Circle.

PERSONAL: From 1997 to 1999, David was married to Ingrid Quinn. On November 24, 2001, he married actress Jamie Berman. They're the parents of son Jaden Rayne, born May 1, 2002; and daughter Bella, born on August 31, 2009. In 2013, David, Jamie and their friends Aaron and Melissa Ravo started the Chrome Girl nail polish line.

DAVID ON THE SERIES COMING TO AN END: "In this business, things happen so quickly and so fast that I've always focused on getting the first episode done, then the following episode and not be so concerned about storylines and where the character is heading. Walking around thinking it's never going to end or that you're invincible – I think that's one of the traps in Hollywood, that you have to really be cautious and be aware of who you are as a person. And you have to remain strong in that foundation, which is something that I got from my parents growing up."

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Alyson Hannigan (Willow Rosenberg)

PROFESSIONAL: While Buffy was on the air, Alyson managed to score roles in the first three American Pie films (released 1999, 2001 and 2003, with American Reunion in 2012), and Boys and Girls (2000). Following the series' demise, in 2004 she starred on London's West End in a theatrical production of When Harry Met Sally. Just a year later she was back on television, playing Lily Aldrin in the long-running (2005-2014) sitcom How I Met Your Mother, while simultaneously having a recurring role on Veronica Mars.

PERSONAL: One story arc of Buffy had Alexis Denisof appear as a "Watcher" named Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. He made enough of an impression with fans that he reprised the role on Angel, but for Alyson the impression was such that she ended up marrying him in October 2003. They have two daughters, Satyana Marie Denisof (born 2009) and Keeva Jane Denisof (born 2012). She and Alexis serve as godparents to Joss Whedon's son, Arden.

ALYSON ON BEING CONSIDERED AN ALL-AMERICAN/MEG RYAN TYPE: "That wasn't my agenda," she admitted to the New York Post," but if you want to go there, you can. I wouldn't fight that. I'm just trying to do stuff that I love and hopefully other people respond to. But if people compare me to her, I would not be upset. I've heard it in the past, and I've always thought it was a real compliment."

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Nicholas Brendan (Xander Harris)

PROFESSIONAL: Nicholas tried to parlay Buffy's success into another television series, but didn't have a lot of luck doing so. In 2003 he was a part of the Fox pilot The Pool at Maddy Breakers, which did not go to series. The following year he co-starred in Celeste in the City, an ABC Family movie; and in 2005 was a part of Kitchen Confidential, which was canceled after four episodes. In 2006 he provided his voice for an episode of American Dragon: Jake Long and also co-starred with Buffy's Charisma Carpenter in the ABC family movie Relative Chaos. Some theater work was next before he returned to TV in a recurring role on Criminal Minds. In 2010 he appeared in a four-episode arc of Private Practice, and in 2014 it was announced that he would star in a sci-fi web series. He is currently filming the movie Redwood.

PERSONAL: Active in charity work, he found (very brief) happiness in love when he married Moonda Tee in October 2014, though they announced they were getting a divorce four months later. Over the past five years, Nicholas has found himself in trouble with the law and arrested on numerous occasions due to issues of depression and alcohol/sleeping pill abuse. He went on Dr. Phil to discuss his issues in August 2015 but walked off feeling that the host "wanted me to lay the darkest parts of myself on TV right from the start, and I'm not willing to do that." He recently came back to the show, speaking openly and honestly about what he's been going through — including a September 22nd suicide attempt in which he used a steak knife to try and slit his wrists; and the fact that, at age 10, he was molested by a music teacher.

NICHOLAS' VIEW ON HIS PERSONAL DEMONS: "I think about it every day of my life and I wonder how it affected me," he admitted to Dr. Phil of the molestation. "Did I stop growing emotionally? When you're molested for a couple of years and you're blamed for it by the people who are supposed to be your protectors, there's going to be a lot of confusion and a lot of sadness." As to the suicide attempt, he added, "I think I wanted to be heard. I think I wanted to be helped, you know? Because I think there's a lot of good life to live."

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Michelle Trachtenberg (Dawn Summers)

PROFESSIONAL: She may have only arrived in season five of Buffy playing the lead character's mystically created sister, but Michelle hasn't looked back since the series ended. She had a recurring role on HBO's Six Feet Under, starred in Disney's Ice Princess (2005), guest starred on NBC's Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2005), was in the film Black Christmas (2006), appeared in 28 episodes of the CW's Gossip Girl, had a recurring role on Love Bites and Showtime's Weeds, guest starred on Criminal Minds and appeared in the films 17 Again and Cop Out (both 2009), Take Me Home Tonight (2011), and Sexy Evil Genius (2013). She starred in Killing Kennedy (2013) as Lee Harvey Oswald's wife, Marina. She recently starred in Sister Cities (2016).

PERSONAL: Not much is known about Michelle's private life, beyond the fact that she speaks fluent Russian and actually celebrates both Hanukkah and Christmas.

MICHELLE ON PLAYING "EVIL" CHARACTERS: "It's fun because you can be the nastiest, bitchiest girl and then someone yells cut and pats you on the back and says, 'Good job.' It's like, 'Thanks,'" she mused to Seventeen. "But playing a sweet girl is actually more challenging because there is a fine line between sweet and naive and just dumb doe-eyed. Evil is just evil. It's kind of fun to just flip in and out, but to play the nice girl you have to find the right balance."

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James Marsters (Spike)

PROFESSIONAL: When Buffy concluded its run, James segued over to Angel as Spike for its fifth and final season. He served as narrator of Jim Butcher's Dresden Files audiobooks, portrayed Superman villain Brainiac in a number of episodes of Smallville and voiced the Man of Steel's arch enemy Lex Luthor in the animated film Superman: Doomsday (2007), hit the London stage for performances of his own abridged adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth, and co-starred in the film P.S. I Love You (2007). Other films include Dragon Ball, Moonshot and High Plains Invaders (all 2009). During all of this, James has enjoyed a career in music, playing with bands and solo in bars and clubs around the country.

PERSONAL LIFE: For starters, he's not British, having been born in America. The once-divorced James married Patricia Rahman in Trier, Germany on January 14, 2011.

JAMES ON ACTING: "I have truly enjoyed acting in anything since the fourth grade," he told GeeksSpeak. "I love the feeling that I'm hoodwinking the audience, like I'm a con man and they're my mark. The difference between me and a true grifter is that I'm not conning people out of anything. I'm conning them into accepting a gift. The gift may be a new perspective, a celebration of their better selves, simple escape or subversion. Subversion is my favorite gift. We all get taught lies when we are children. Some of these are violence works, old people are boring, and you can buy your self-identity."

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Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase)

PROFESSIONAL: Having come over to Angel from Buffy, Charisma departed the former following the fourth season. In 2004 she had a three episode arc on Charmed, a recurring role on Veronica Mars and season one of Greek, and guest appearances on Back to You and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. TV movie and direct-to-video roles followed in What Boys Like, Voodoo Moon, See Jane Date, Relative Chaos (which co-stars Buffy's Nicholas Brendan), Flirting With Danger, Cheaters' Club and House of Bones. On the big screen she was seen in Sylvester Stallone's first two Expendables films, but then moved back to TV for a continuing role in the series The Lying Game. In August 2013 she began serving as host of ID's Surviving Evil. She recently made an appearance on Chicago P.D. on NBC.

PERSONAL: In October 2002, Charisma married Damie Hardy, and on March 24, 2003 gave birth to their son Donovan. The couple were divorced in July 2008. Additionally, back in 1991, long before she joined Buffy, she and two of her friends were victimized by police officer/serial rapist Henry Hubbard, Jr. on San Diego's Torrey Pines State Beach. That experience led her to hosting Surviving Evil, the premiere episode of which centered around her.

CHARISMA ON DEALING WITH TRAUMA: "When I was eight years old," she related to Collider, "or I may have been younger, my aunt picked me up and threw me in the pool and I didn't know how to swim. It was, like, 'Conquer your fear and just get on with it.' It must have made an impact on me, because I'm mentioning it now. I think that's my motto: sink or swim. Am I going to drown in my sorrow? No. I have to overcome whatever obstacle it is. I've faced other obstacles in my life besides Hubbard. He's not the penultimate obstacle in my life. My career is an ongoing thing. My love relationships are an ongoing thing. We're constantly evolving. I have insecurities about being a good mom, or balancing my career with motherhood. All of those are very strong, very real obstacles. My motto is just unconsciously, and maybe now consciously, because I'm saying it, is sink or swim. I'm a fighter."

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Anthony Stewart Head (Rupert Giles)

PROFESSIONAL: Although he would recur until the end of Buffy's run, Anthony went back home to Britain, where he starred in a number of television productions, among them Manchild, My Family and Little Britain (on which he was one of the main stars), Silent Witness, Murder Investigation Team, Spooks, and Monarch of the Glen. From 2008 to 2011 he starred as Uther Pendragon in Merlin, also appearing in the show's final season in 2012. He recently starred on the TV series Guilt (2016) and slated to appear in the upcoming show Still Star-Crossed.

PERSONAL: He lives in London with his partner Sarah Fisher, and is a father to daughters Emily (born in 1988) and Daisy (born in 1991), who have both become actresses.

ANTHONY'S VIEW OF THE COMIC-CON EXPERIENCE: "Comic-Con is a bizarre world," he jokes to Collider. "It's wonderful. It's nice, feeling the love. Everywhere you walk, you feel the love. I'm fortunate because people can't put a label on me, which I embrace wholeheartedly. I'm taken under the sci-fi world's wing and the fantasy world's wing, but at the same time, I can do [shows] which are about reality and real life. People don't seem able to pigeonhole me yet, which is great."

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Emma Caulfield (Anya)

PROFESSIONAL: Following Buffy, Emma starred in the horror film Darkness Falls (2003) and in the following year appeared on an episode of Monk. From there she produced and starred in the film satire Bandwagon, which screened at a number of film festivals. In 2012 she posted the film to YouTube and followed it with a 12-part web series which served as a sequel. Bouncing back and forth between mediums, she co-wrote the IDW comic book Contropussy, starred in the independent feature TiMER (2009), appeared as Hansel & Gretel's blind witch in ABC's One Upon a Time and guest starred in the second season of the web series Husbands.

PERSONAL: Emma married Cornelius Grobbelaar on August 23, 2006, but filed for divorce three years later.

EMMA ON BUFFY'S ENDURING POPULARITY: "I don't find it strange," the actress noted to House of Geekery. "I did, but now I don't. I only did because I never anticipated the show having this kind of life at the time. You never know what's going to hit and what won't. But now it's, like, 'Well, of course.' The kids are getting younger and younger, the fan base is literally anywhere from 10 to their parents. It's cool."

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Seth Green (Daniel "Oz" Osbourne)

PROFESSIONAL: Following his breakout role in Buffy, Seth has appeared in over 150 movies and television shows including, Rat Race (2001), Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002), The Italian Job (2003), That '70s Show, Grey's Anatomy and How I Met Your Mother. He is also the creator of animated series *Robot Chicken_

PERSONAL: He is married to actress Clare Grant after tying the knot in 2010.

SETH ON NOT SHOWING HIS TATTOOS: "Yeah, but they're for me and no one else, so when people are like, "Ooh! Do this!," I'm like, "No, 'cause you'll see my tattoo and you're not gonna." It's that simple,' he said. "It's because it's nobody's business."

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Eliza Dushku (Faith)

PROFESSIONAL: Eliza starred in the hit movie Bring It On (alongside Kirsten Dunst) as Missy Pantone. Once she had put Buffy and Angel behind her, she hit the big screen in The New Guy and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (both 2001) and Wrong Turn and The Kiss (both 2003). Also in 2003, she returned to television in the series Tru Calling, which lasted two seasons. Over the next few years she had roles in a number of video games and features, before taking on more film projects, notably Sex and Breakfast (2007), Open Graves, The Thacker Case and the Alphabet Killer(all 2008). Next she decided to collaborate with Joss Whedon again (this time with Eliza serving as producer as well as star) on the Fox TV series Dollhouse, which went two seasons beginning in 2009. More recently she starred in the film The Scribbler (2014), the pilot TV movie for a reboot of The Saint, provided her voice for a couple of Marvel Comics animated series and has guest starred on an episode of Banshee.

PERSONAL: Like many of her Buffy co-stars, charity is important to Eliza. She serves on the board of directors of the THRIVEGulu organization, which is dedicated to helping the survivors of war in Northern Uganda. From October 2009 to June 2014 she dated and lived with Los Angeles Lakers basketball player Rick Fox.

ELIZA ON PLAYING THE "BAD" GIRL: "I really built up this tough shell and it was a bit of a facade," she recalls. "At the same time, it was my reality, because just to survive you kind of have to have the attitude of, ‘Nothing hurts me; you can’t get through to me.’ I was kind of this really hard, little Boston chick. It worked really well for Faith and for the creation of that character. Joss Whedon kind of zoned into that and we worked with it. Truthfully, though, I get misunderstood sometimes because everyone says, ‘Oh, you just love to play the bad girl because she’s so bad and because it’s just so fun to be evil,’ and I say, ‘No, it’s not just about that.’ It’s about, I think, that I have a connection to a bad girl character that makes it more than just so black and white, and more than just so evil."

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Amber Benson (Tara)

PROFESSIONAL: Before Buffy had even left the air, Amber was spreading her wings having co-written the movie The theory of the Leisure Class (2001), directed and acted in the digital feature Chance (2002), and produced the play she wrote, Albert Hall. In 2003, she and author Christopher Golden produced Ghosts of Albion: Legacy and its sequels as a series of animated films for the BBC Cult website, which, in turn, spawned the Amber/Golden-written novels Ghosts of Albion: Accursed and Ghosts of Albion: Witchery. Comic book writing ensued, with Amber then producing her second feature film, Lovers, Liars & Lunatics (2006). She continued writing novels, resulting in Death's Daughter (2009), Cat's Claw (2010), Serpent's Storm (2011) and How to Be Death (2012). Most recently she starred in Trip House (2016).

PERSONAL: Between 2002 and 2009 Amber dated actor Adam Busch, who portrayed the character of Warren Mears on Buffy.

AMBER ON BEING A WRITER: "I always knew that I wanted to make stuff," she stated to the AVClub. "I love acting, acting is wonderful, but is very much the kind of career path where you are not in control of your own destiny. You are waiting for other people to give you work. I can't do that. I like to be occupied. I was, like, 'Being an actor's not going to be enough. I'm going to be sitting around on sets, bored. I'm going to read a lot of books,' which I do anyway, 'so maybe I should be making my own stuff. I should be writing and creating.' That was why I was drawn to hanging out with the writers and producers, because they were doing what I wanted to be doing. I always said that, when I grow up, I want to be like Joss Whedon: I want to have my own world. It's fascinating to create your own world and be God."

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Marc Blucas (Riley Finn)

PROFESSIONAL: Marc joined the cast of the WB series in 1999 and stayed until 2002, playing Buffy's first post-Angel boyfriend. Since his role as Riley, he has starred in First Daughter (2004), Knight and Day (2010) and the TV show Necessary Roughness. He recently appeared in the TV show Underground.

PERSONAL: Marc is married to Ryan Haddon, who was previously married to actor Christian Slater.

MARC ON NEVER DRINKING: Yeah, I’m pretty square. I haven’t become a trapezoid or a hexagon. Most people ask me if I have an alcoholic parent or if I’m a Mormon. But for me, it started as an athlete thing. If it didn’t help make me a better basketball player, I really didn’t do it — and that included Coke and cake and the drugs and alcohol thing. If it was something I wanted to explore, I would do so responsibly. But like, I don’t know, needlepoint, it’s just something I’m not interested in."

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