As hard as it is to imagine a fresh entry in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe coming about without the involvement of creator / writer Joss Whedon that looks to be exactly what's happening. Though Whedon is now so associated with the brand that the 'Whedon' and 'Buffy' names seem forever linked, it wasn't always that way and - apparently - Whedon has never actually held controlling rights. Those, it seems, belong to original feature film director and television series exec producer Fran Kuzui. And Fran wants to make more features.
Though not funded and set up yet, Kuzui and her producing partner / husband Kaz Kuzui have joing forces with Roy Lee and Doug Davison at Vertigo Entertainment to set up some sort of franchise relaunch as a big studio film. And while the initial reaction to this was a pretty major jump-back on reflection it actually makes a whole lot of sense. There's a loyal fan base out there hungry for more stories from the Buffy-verse and the mythology of the world is absolutely perfect for this sort of relaunch. After all, it all plays out in a world where there is always a Slayer - all you need to do is set it in a different time period and you immediately have a legitimate spot to introduce an entirely new set of characters, which is exactly what they intend to do. No Spike, no Xander, no Willow, no Angel, no Buffy. New Slayer, new supporting cast. With a smart writer and good support cast, this could actually work ...
Your kidding, right?
I mean. NOT AGAIN the Kuzuis who almost killed the character in the first place and never understood it either.
It's a sad day ..
Maybe now it'll be good.
And here he comes .. the first Whedon hater...
A Whedon free Buffy = Suckage of the highest order.
Money hungry producers with a severe lack of talent or par for the course but I really thought the Kazui's had been locked away in Executive Producer hell for good. Damn, they got paid for every ep of the show but did not do a single thing for it...hence why it was good.
Nobody likes the first film, I believe it's a fact of some kind.
It was nothing less than a miracle that Whedon got the show running and then turned out an amazing, classic show [not to mention Angel]. Tis the stuff of legend.
Think about it; the basic concept is truely awful.
Girl slayer, fights vampires, has a watcher, always a new slayer...bah.
What made the thing work was Whedon's knack for characters...besides, no one liked the slayer character anyway. People tuned in for Spike or Evil Willow etc etc.
If it's not Whedon, it's not Buffy.
And I actually liked the movie, a lot.
bonnequin seconded. the original movie was enjoyable but as Brad said, the premise didnt make Buffy, Joss did.
just no.
It'll be like Batman without Batman... this really sucks :(
On paper, I'm sure that the idea of an entire history full of "chosen ones" sounds like it's a cinematic goldmine. Call the heroine anything other than Buffy and you're instantly on the fasttrack to reboot new interest in the series.
The problem - as any fan of the series will tell you - is that Joss Whedon and associates have done such a fantastic job of not only showing us who the current slayer is, but have already depicted many of the slayers past and present (and future, if you count the comics), that there really just isn't much room to add upon their work without stepping all over the existing mythology already so well known to the fanbase. Seeing as how it's these fans who are the ones who will ultimately be deciding if their efforts are worthwhile or just another Hollywood attempt to capitalize on the past successes of a valued franchise, I can't imagine why they would even think that this decision makes any kind of good marketing sense.
Now how about a movie about a cool, twenty-something rocker dude who also happens to be a werewolf, maybe teamed up with a bleached-blonde vampire with a soul? Doesn't that sound more interesting?
This is NOT what Buffy fans want. This is only the Kukui's effort to exploit the Twilight craze. No Whedon. No Buffy.