'Buffy' Star Sarah Michelle Gellar Speaks About 'Extremely Toxic Male' Set

American actress Sarah Michelle Gellar disclosed that early on in her career as an actress, she had the idea that all sets were "extremely toxic" because of what the set of her show, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," looked like.

Gellar is popularly known for starring as Buffy Summers in the 1997 American drama series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," whose creator has recently come under fire for toxicity and abuse.

The actress, who had earlier shown support to survivors of abuse, also took time to describe the significance of being around supportive women throughout her career.

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During a roundtable discussion at The Wrap's Power of Women summit in Los Angeles, Gellar opened up on her time acting in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," revealing that it had an "extremely toxic male cast."

The actress, 45, discussed the frequent display of deceptive and misogynistic behavior on the set, adding that she thought that was how all sets were.

"For so long, I was on a set that I think was known for being an extremely toxic male set, and so that was ingrained in my head that that was what all sets were like, and that women were pitted against each other — that if women became friends, then we became too powerful, so you had to keep that down," Gellar said.

She also pointed out that, despite the aforementioned, surrounding herself with supportive men and women throughout her 40-year-long career was very important.

"Now that I've had this opportunity to work with so many more women and men that support women as well, I realized how easy an experience it can be, but … unfortunately we're still in that place where all of those departments a lot of times need to be women for us to have a voice," she said.

While Gellar didn't particularly name "Buffy" showrunner Joss Whedon in her statement, the filmmaker has been accused of toxic behavior in the past.

In 2021, Gellar's co-star on "Buffy," Charisma Carpenter, accused Whedon of "toxic" and "hostile" behavior, saying that he "abused his power on numerous occasions while working on the sets of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'" and its sequel, "Angel ."

Amber Benson, who starred as Tara Maclay on the show, also tweeted, "Buffy was a toxic environment and it starts at the top. [Charisma Carpenter]

 is speaking truth and I support her 100%. There was a lot of damage done during that time, and many of us are still processing it twenty-plus years later." 

Michelle Trachtenberg, who played Dawn Summers on "Buffy" also hurled accusations at the filmmaker, claiming he engaged in "not appropriate behavior" when she worked on the set as a young girl.

According to a report by the New York Times, Gellar revealed that she's partaken of such toxic behavior in the past, although the actress didn't go further to explain.

While responding to questions on her experience as a teen in the industry, the actress pointed out that her early days were hard, adding that "there weren't great female roles when I came up."

She said her roles were limited to "girlfriend" and "wife" roles, further noting that "Buffy" was spectacular because she had something to do.

Making her remarks on surviving the industry as a young girl, the Teen Choice Award winner said, "Growing up in New York, I had a little bit of street sense going into it, which is helpful. But no, it was not easy. And I've had my fair share of experiences, I have just chosen not — I don't win by telling my stories, emotionally, for me. I look at people that tell their stories, and I'm so impressed. But in this world where people get torn apart, and victim blaming and shaming, I just keep my stories in here."

In an Instagram post, the actress offered support to people who have endured and survived abuse.

She said, "While I am proud to have my name associated with Buffy Summers, I don't want to be forever associated with the name Joss Whedon … I stand with all survivors of abuse and am proud of them for speaking out."

Joss Whedon has since addressed the allegations of abuse, stating that he didn't do anything wrong. In an interview with the New York Magazine (via NYP), the director responded to a claim that he grabbed a costume designer's hand by saying, "I know I would get angry, but I was never physical with people."