What most scares Sarah Michelle Gellar and how she moved on from ‘toxic’ Buffy set with new show Wolf Pack | Ents & Arts News

Known for her iconic role as Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Sarah Michelle Gellar is taking on the supernatural once again with her new show Wolf Pack.

Having described some of the behavior in the ’90s hit movie as malicious, she told Sky News that now that she’s an executive producer, she wants to use her influence to make sure children The only monster she fought appeared on screen.

“I needed a communicative, collaborative suite where everyone had a say,” explains Gellar.

“And, you know, when I was growing up in this industry, we were told not to, and if we did, we’d be in trouble.

“And I don’t think this is a Hollywood thing – when you’re new to the industry, you don’t want to make waves, you accept a lot of things that are unacceptable, and I need the strength to change that and be involved. It’s not just me who wants to be on the set that I want to be on, but everyone wants to be on it.

“Look, we can play pretend, it’s really fun, but there’s a lot of hours involved and there’s a lot of stunts and you know, all kinds of things, and I needed it to be a safe place. for everyone.”

On Wolf Pack, Gellar is no longer one of the youngest on the set. Her character is an investigator investigating a wildfire that seems to have awakened a mysterious being – and in the process changed the lives of two teenagers.

But drawing on his own experience, the star took practical steps to make sure the younger cast and crew of Wolf Pack felt comfortable during filming.

She said: “I was like, this is my cell phone, give me a call – and I think it’s easier for them to talk to me if something bothers them.”

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She added: “It’s hard when it’s your producer, your boss, your network, and everyone has a bottom line – I don’t, I’m here to make all of this work and work. good motion.

“And by the way, not just to the actors – I said that to the whole crew, to the production assistants: If you’re too tired and the time is too long, let me know. Now there’s Uber. , is there a really easy way for people not to get in a car accident while they’re at work, calling an Uber is nothing to production and guess what? you an Uber.”

‘The scariest things in life scare us emotionally’

It’s been 20 years since Buffy ended, and Gellar says she’s drawn back to the genre not by mythical creatures, but by what they represent.

“For me, the scariest things in life are what scares us emotionally, and that’s what this monster metaphorically and really deals with anxiety,” the actress said. explainer.

“You know, it’s a word that we use a lot right now, we all feel it, we’re bombarded by news 24/7, and what it does and the flow of information. this continuum.

“The idea is that anxiety is really your body working at its peak, but we don’t know what to do with that, so when you harness that, you can actually turn it become our superpower – and if we had the tools to really deal with anxiety, what would we be able to do?”

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How the star overcame COVID

But she admits that she barely got into the Wolf Pack – initially saying no when asked to see the script, joking that it was “animal instinct” that took over when she finally came to the comedy. heart.

“The idea of ​​the piano really worked out for me. It was the right time, you know, we’ve just come out of COVID, where without my guitar, my cocoon, if you will. , I wouldn’t have gotten over it,” said Gellar.

“And what it’s like when you don’t have that and how lonely it feels.

“I was surprised when I said yes, it surprised Jeff [Davis – the show’s creator]that surprised my team – it was a very purely emotional response to material that made sense to me.”

Wolf Pack is now streaming on Paramount +