“Bring back OG characters”: Chloé Zhao shares details about Buffy the Vampire Slayer pilot

A day ago, November 14, 2025, Chloé Zhao shared plot details of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer pilot at Variety. It is a supernatural TV series produced by Joss Whedon. The pilot aired on March 10, 1997, 28 years ago. Zhao said that this supernatural TV series feels like a period drama and more like a spiritual excavation. Additionally, Zhao described:

"It is not a robot. It's a sequel. You can never replace these characters. I would never allow that."

She added:

"We will bring back OG characters for sure."

In 1966, the pilot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was produced by 20th Century Fox Television. It was not shown on TV and was created to promote the series' premise to other networks.

Find out more about what Chloé Zhao shared, along with a brief of the pilot below.

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Pilot Details shared by Chloé Zhao

Storyline and pilot plot details

The story of Buffy the Vampire Slayer begins with Buffy Summers, the show's lead character. Audiences saw Buffy move to Sunnydale after she got kicked out of her school in Los Angeles. She started going to Sunnydale High, where she met Cordelia, Willow, and Xander. She meets her new Watcher, Rupert Giles, on her first day at Sunnydale High, where he even tells her that he knows she is the Slayer.

As marks of a vampire bite are found on a dead body in the locker room of the girls, Buffy understands that she is not able to avoid her fate. One day, a vampire tricks Willow and tries to trap her. Buffy arrives with Xander & fights the vampire. She defeats them all. Her story in Buffy the Vampire Slayer begins with a mysterious figure named Angel, who informs her of the impending Harvest and gives me a silver cross.

That night, vampires capture her and her new friend Willow, as well as Jesse. Buffy hurries to their rescue, saves Willow, and does not save Jesse, who is bitten by them and becomes part of the vampires. She now has to play her part in the Slayer and prevent the evil scheme of the Master.

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Why is the pilot special to Chloé Zhao?

The episode was an hour long once a week, which made it a special exercise to watch. As the last episode stopped, everybody sat without speaking. Many were weeping and intertwining their hands. Chloé looked at the screen with tears in her eyes and said:

"Good luck to you, Buffy Summers, good luck to you."

She added:

"I watched religiously. I was at Mount Holyoke."

The Awards Circuit Roundtable discusses Netflix nominations, local film festival winners, and some of the surprises in the Oscar business. Zhao also said that the two age groups have been united in the show. It is not just in the case of young viewers. The team highly values its fans. They want the old fans to feel like they belong as well as include new fans. It is a story that is aimed at anyone.

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Chloe Zhao shared her passionate love for the pilot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She remembers how the event brought people together and gave them amazing emotions. According to her, the story of Buffy the Vampire Slayer moved most hearts and gave fans a feeling of being noticed.

Zhao felt that it was not merely a supernatural story in the show. It was as if we had been traveling somewhere into the depths of things. She admired the original characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and did not desire to have them substituted.

Emotionally, her recollection of watching the show was rich. She would follow the show weekly and identify herself with Buffy. The words she used revealed the extent to which the show meant to her and to a lot of other people.

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