Sarah Michelle Gellar Just Responded to Her ‘Buffy’ Co-Star’s Abuse Claims Against the Show’s Creator

Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Sarah Michelle Gellar has responded to Joss Whedon’s abuse allegations, just hours after her co-star Charisma Carpenter accused the show’s creator of leading a “hostile and toxic” work environment.

Gellar—who starred as the series’ titular hero, Buffy Summers—took to Instagram to issue a statement addressing recent allegations made by her former co-star on Wednesday, February 10. “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,” Gellar, 43, wrote. “I am more focused on raising my family and surviving a pandemic currently, so I will not be making any further statements at this time. But I stand with all survivors of abuse and am proud of them for speaking out.”

Gellar’s comments came shortly after Carpenter, 50, shared a statement on social media where she alleged Whedon, 56, “abused his power” on the set of Buffy and its spinoff, Angel. Carpenter, who played Cordelia Chase in the series, called Whedon “casually cruel” in her statement before detailing his alleged attempts to “alienate” her from her castmates—including calling her “fat” around her co-stars when she was four months pregnant and “berating” her for religious beliefs.

Source: Instagram

“These memories and more have weighed on my soul like bricks for nearly half of my life,” Carpenter said in her lengthy statement, which you can read in full here. “I wish I said something sooner. I wish I had the composure and courage all those years ago. But I muted myself in shame and conditioned silence.”

https://twitter.com/AllCharisma/status/1359537752853807105

She concluded, “It has taken me so long to muster the courage to make this statement publicly. The gravity of it is not lost on me. As a single mother whose family’s livelihood is dependent on my craft, I’m scared. Despite my dear about its impact on my future, I can no longer remain silent. This is overdue and necessary. It is time.”

https://twitter.com/amber_benson/status/1359555694098190337

Amber Benson, who played castmate Tara Maclay on Buffy, echoed Carpenter’s statement and praised her for “speaking truth.” Benson, 44, tweeted, “Buffy was a toxic environment and it starts at the top. @AllCharisma 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.”

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