Sarah Michelle Gellar played Buffy Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer from 1997 to 2003, and before the series finale, Gellar found the perfect project to serve as her follow-up to the series. The supernatural drama is undoubtedly Gellar’s magnum opus as it ran for seven critically acclaimed seasons. Buffy the Vampire Slayer‘s success and continued relevance decades after it ended make it Gellar’s most well-known project. Because of its impressive dominance, it would be difficult for Gellar to find a movie or show to replace it. Thankfully, the actress landed a role in 2002 that was the perfect successor to Buffy.

A reboot of
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
is reportedly in the works.

Although Gellar has appeared in numerous movies and TV shows over the years, Buffy the Vampire Slayer‘s popularity pushes it to the forefront of her filmography. The show launched a franchise, which includes a spinoff, podcast series, comic books, novels, and more. Plus, Gellar’s role as Buffy in Buffy the Vampire Slayer earned her many awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe nod for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama in 2001. Nevertheless, one of Gellar’s other roles arguably comes in second when discussing her most renowned projects.

Scooby-Doo’s Daphne Was Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Perfect Buffy Replacement

Gellar Starred As Daphne In Scooby-Doo In 2002

Less than a year before UPN released the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series finale, Sarah Michelle Gellar starred as Daphne Blake in a live-action version of the classic cartoon Scooby-Doo. The 2002 mystery adventure comedy, directed by Raja Gosnell and written by James Gunn, follows Mystery Inc. (Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, Velma, and Scooby) as they reunite to investigate strange happenings at Spooky Island, a horror-themed resort. Just from the trailer alone, it was obvious that Gellar was the perfect choice to play Daphne and Scooby-Doo could replace Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

[Sarah Michelle] Gellar excelled at playing Buffy in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
and Daphne in
Scooby-Doo
​​​​​.

While Scooby-Doo is a movie and Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a TV show, the magnitude of both pieces of work and their similar genres ties them together in Gellar’s catalog. Plus, they were released in the early aughts. Both Scooby-Doo and Buffy the Vampire Slayer have also generated cult followings, and they are also two of Gellar’s most popular projects. So, it just makes sense that Scooby-Doo would replace Buffy the Vampire Slayer for Gellar (even though it only had one sequel).

There Was A Lot Of Buffy In Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Daphne

Buffy & Daphne Share A Lot In Common

The 2000s live-action movie Scooby-Doo serving as Sarah Michelle Gellar’s successor to Buffy the Vampire Slayer also makes sense due to the fact that Buffy and Daphne are quite similar. Both are strong female leads who can fight for themselves. Buffy and Daphne refuse to be the damsel in distress and consistently hold their own when tossed into difficult and strenuous situations. The two fictional characters also aren’t afraid to embrace their feminity by fighting bad guys in heels and not conforming to traditional conventions attributed to their roles. Consequently, Gellar excelled at playing Buffy in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Daphne in Scooby-Doo​​​​​​.

Why Scooby-Doo 3 With The Same Cast Never Happened

Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed Was The Final Movie

Sadly, Sarah Michelle Gellar only portrayed Daphne twice on the big screen (in 2002’s Scooby-Doo and 2004’s Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed). James Gunn had developed a plot for Scooby-Doo 3, but the film was canceled. The 2004 sequel received negative reviews from critics, which persuaded Warner Bros. Pictures to throw out all plans for a third movie. Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed ultimately did not perform as well as the film production and distribution company wanted (the mystery adventure comedy grossed $181.2 million at the worldwide box office against a budget of $25 – 80 million).

Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed eventually amassed a cult following, but it was too late. The third movie was canceled, and the actors (including Gellar) had to move on from the franchise. Unfortunately, Gellar’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer replacement ended quicker than expected, and the actress had to look ahead to her next project. Gellar went on to star in movies like The Grudge, Possession, and Clerks III, while her list of TV shows included The Crazy Ones and Wolf Pack. Nevertheless, nothing has lived up to Gellar’s roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Scooby-Doo​​​​​​.