Buffy 2026 – a messy pilot leads to a messy cancellation fallout.
Politely, the fallout of the cancellation of Buffy: New Sunnydale has become a bit of a shit-show with OG Buffy Sarah Michelle Gellar at the centre of it all.
After first announcing via an Instagram video on Saturday morning that the show wouldn’t be moving ahead at Hulu, SMG then went on to criticise (but not name) the Hulu exec responsible for the project. She slammed him for not being a fan and for proudly saying he wasn’t that into the original series.
In that same interview she was also critical of Hulu announcing the cancellation right before she was walking the red carpet at the launch of her new film Ready Or Not 2 and before pilot director (and show EP) Chloé Zhao was attending the Oscars for her nominated film.
Kate Arthur at Variety then yesterday publishes a piece that seems well-sourced from staff at Hulu which detailed the problems with the pilot. The piece suggested Hulu thought it wasn’t mainstream enough, only introduced SMG at the very end of the episode with a single line delivered, and played the teens as being too young.
Articles like this only happen when the network feels that they have been burned and want to set the record right.
Lesley Goldberg at The Ankler reported that the pilot budget was $12 million, so it’s safe to suggest that we weren’t looking at a show filmed on a tight budget like the OG series had been. As Goldberg notes, the show failed twice to clear hurdles needed for a series greenlight – Hulu wasn’t into the pilot, nor the rewrites requested from sibling showrunners Nora and Lilla Zuckerman.
Then you also have SMG back on the promotional circuit for her film being asked about the project. She is now asking fans not to read the pilot script, which has leaked online.
“I actually hope it doesn’t,” she said. “Because then everyone’s going to have an opinion on this and that, and pilots are not finished. It wasn’t done, right? It’s not like we did a season and finished it and then they shelved it. It’s not like when they made ‘Batgirl’ the movie, right, and then didn’t show it.”
I don’t think she’s wrong in saying this, but with the show not going ahead and SMG publicly criticising the unnamed Hulu exec (t was Craig Erwich) for making a decision based on something other than its quality, I think it is perfectly reasonable for people to want to judge the quality of the script.
I’d be very keen to see the rewrite on the script, addressing the concerns of Hulu.
My criticism of the scripts: I don’t want to read a sci-fi premised show with a lead character named Nova that isn’t from the planet of the apes. But that’s just me.
All of this has become quite the mess. I’d be very surprised if the show does eventually return with SMG involved in any way – I can’t imagine anyone involved will be keen to see that happen.
Not all men (who work as documentarians)
Alison Foreman at Indiewire asks whether men should make documentaries about sexism, writing about the
She writes:
Was Theroux doomed to fail? Can a man — even a thoughtful, experienced documentarian of many years — capture the scale of what women are really up against today? Perhaps not.
“Inside the Manosphere” wastes its influential perch on the world’s biggest streaming platform with an approach that ultimately magnifies Theroux’s blind spots. Empathetic but flawed, he seems to genuinely believe he’s exposing a shadowy network that’s paradoxically infamous for streaming 24/7 online.
By placing himself at the center of that ecosystem without the tools needed to seriously challenge it, Theroux risks doing exactly what these influencers want: expanding their reach, lending their ideas legitimacy, and spotlighting the wealth, desirability, and power they crave.
Can a female critic approach a review about a documentary about a man exploring sexism through the manosphere? Perhaps not.
My tongue is firmly in cheek …that question is obviously ridiculous.
A lot has been written/said about the manosphere over the past couple of years. I’ve read/heard insightful commentary across it from people across the gender spectrum. I’ve also heard exceptionally dumb commentary about the manosphere from people of different genders.
I’d hate to think that any of these valuable voices are lessened because of their gender. And really, wasn’t part of the rise of the manosphere a result of men feeling like the value of their voice and societal contribution was being devalued because of their gender? It seems rich now to suggest that men shouldn’t be able to investigate issues related to the manosphere.
Foreman does probe the actual question which should be asked here, which is whether Theroux and his very specific journalistic style is suited for a topic like this:
Theroux’s kindness-first approach, typically an asset, becomes a liability when dealing with subjects to whom compassion is coded as weakness and then weaponized for content. He succeeds, to a degree, in getting these generally loathsome men to speak openly about their already very public, anti-woman personas. But talking about yourself is not the same as sharing the truth. Basic questions from Theroux like, “Why not try to be a good person?” are met with bafflement rather than reflection, and these flimsy exchanges tend to illuminate the rigidity of the manosphere ideology rather than penetrate it.
Worse still, the dynamic often flips on Theroux.
The manosphere influencers appear as comfortable performing for him as they do for their fans, occasionally mocking Theroux outright and making him a prop in clips that went viral online months before “Inside the Manosphere” hit Netflix. The film captures an imbalance — between educated men fighting for women and the meatheads who think both groups are a joke — without fully reckoning with it.
I’d argue that is a constant fault in the work of Theroux who often fails to fully reckon with his subject.
Foreman raises a bunch of interesting topic areas that are worth considering when evaluating the documentary that Theroux has delivered. It’s just frustrating that it has all been weakened by the framing of the article about there being a problem with men reporting on the manosphere and not laying the blame squarely at Theroux.
There’s a real irony in what Foreman is doing with this critique of the doco, buried inside a reasonable essay:
The documentary’s most glaring omission is not what it shows, but what it cannot access. Theroux attempts to speak with women connected to his noxious subjects, but his efforts are largely thwarted. Conversations with assistants and girlfriends get cut short or mediated by the very men whose behavior is being questioned. The absence of women is noted, but doesn’t land with the weight it should.
Understanding why these women stay with these men — be it economic dependence, fear of violence, or the allure of visibility — is essential. Their perspectives should be central to the story, and Theroux’s even inadvertent sidelining of their experiences underscore a deeper issue facing the accurate portrayal of sexism and gender dynamics in documentaries. For women, the manosphere is not an intellectual exercise, but a lived reality that requires a true insider’s perspective.
Couldn’t it also be said that for men, the manosphere is not an intellectual exercise, but a lived reality that requires a true insider’s perspective?
Read the article by Alison Foreman at Indiewire. Watch the documentary by Louis Theroux at Netflix. And keep on reading/listening/watching on the topic. It’s a subject that cuts right through to a lot of culture being consumed and celebrated/decried in the current moment.
News Desk
Renee Rapp, the star of The Sex Lives of College Girls who abandoned the show after two seasons, has joined the cast of The Morning Show for season 5. Read: Deadline
California, New York and six other states led by Democratic prosecutors filed a lawsuit to argue that the $6.2 billion Nexstar takeover of competitor local TV affiliate Tegna would cement Nexstar's control over local TV in violation of antitrust laws. Read: THR
Acting Assistant Attorney General Omeed Assefi has said that the Paramount Skydance acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery will not be fast tracked because of political factors. Read: Reuters
Kristen Stewart will star in Prime Video series The Challenger, based on Sally Ride, the first US woman to fly in space. Read: Deadline
HBO’s Neighbors has been picked up for a second season. Read: THR
Netflix has announced a new series based on André Aciman's novel Enigma Variations. It will star Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Read: thefutoncritic
Netflix has announced a new series based on Carley Fortune’s novel This Summer Will Be Different. There’s no cast yet announced. Read: thefutoncritic
Could Tom Cruise be set to play the villain in the upcoming Miami Vice film? It’s believed that the movie will be based on the pilot episode and first season of the 80s cop show. Read: Dark Horizons
Russell T Davies’ TV show It’s A Sin is being adapted to the stage. Read: The Guardian
Gosling flashback
Back in 1998, Ryan Gosling starred in kids TV series Young Hercules. It was a prequel to the Kevin Sorbo nonsense Hercules: The Legendary Journey. There was something about the marketing for Young Hercules and its star that annoyed me. As a result, I never watched the show and Gosling rubbed me the wrong way. It has taken 20 odd years for me to finally get on board with the guy, who I generally quite like in movies now.
The show was not a breakout smash hit and didn’t make Gosling a household name. I feel that the show should be more of a punchline in his career, but it has mostly been forgotten.
With Gosling starring in new film Project Hail Mary (which is fine… it is too long and should have truncated its last 55 minutes), I thought this is a good opportunity to remind the world that at one point Ryan Gosling was cast as a young Kevin Sorbo.
Trailer Park
Off Campus debuts on Prime Video May 13.
A college soap based on the bestselling book series, Off Campus follows an elite ice hockey team, and the women in their lives, as they grapple with love, heartbreak, and self-discovery - forging deep friendships and enduring bonds while navigating the complexities that come with transitioning into adulthood. Season One follows the sexy and fun "opposites attract" romance between quiet songwriter, Hannah, and Briar University's all-star hockey athlete, Garrett.
Balls Up debuts April 15 on Prime Video.
In this raunchy, over-the-top comedy, marketing executives Brad (Mark Wahlberg) and Elijah (Paul Walter Hauser) go "balls out" and pitch a bold full-coverage condom sponsorship with the World Cup.
O11CE: New Generation is now streaming on Disney+
The Truth and Tragedy of Moriah Wilson debuts on Netflix April 3.
An intimate, arresting portrait of cyclist Moriah Wilson - raised by a fierce, loving family - whose singular drive becomes her superpower, carrying her to athletic brilliance and, devastatingly, toward a life cut short by murder.
Bloodhounds 2 debuts on Netflix April 3.
Two young boxers gear up for another fight when a global syndicate running an illegal boxing league targets them and puts their loved ones at risk.
That’s the newsletter for the today.
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