Costume designer Cynthia Bergstrom has recently revealed that Joss Whedon wanted her fired from the acclaimed series, Buffy the VampireSlayer. Buffy the Vampire Slayer first aired back in 1997, and has since become a cult classic '90s show. Buffy naturally developed a strong fanbase that has remained extremely loyal and passionate to this day, when it comes to their beloved heroine.
The hit series was created by Whedon and follows the character of Buffy (Sara Michelle Gellar), a teenager who throughout the series discovers that she is a vampire slayer. Much of Buffy's journey has to do with her figuring out her purpose: to defeat and destroy the most devilish demons in existence in order to protect humanity from the corruptive evil of the world. Due to the massive success that the show acquired, Buffy the Vampire Slayer ran for seven consecutive series. Buffy came to a close in 2003, after winning two Emmys during its long run. Proclaimed author Evan Ross Katz has just released a brand-new book, Into Every Generation A Slayer Is Born: How Buffy Staked Our Hearts, in which he describes the making of the popular series through a succession of interviews with the cast and crew of Buffy.
Katz's book has somehow uncovered even more additional claims against Whedon, exposing the abuse these women experienced behind the camera. In an interview for the book, Bergstrom shared the incredibly nasty, disrespectful remarks that Whedon had in store for her when she chose to turn in her resignation. “I told Joss that I was leaving, and he said, ‘I’m surprised you stayed as long as you did. I was thinking of firing you anyway, because you're too close to Sarah.’ That was a gut punch," Bergstrom stated. "I think at times, Sarah might’ve thought I was too close to Joss because I was right in the middle of the two of them - and the two of them had something going on. My allegiance was always with Sarah. I think Sarah and I had a great relationship up until the end.”
For those who may not know, Whedon has been the topic of controversy for some time now, with many former cast and crew members of Buffy saying that he facilitated a toxic work environment. Although Katz's new book doesn’t at all revolve around these previous allegations against Whedon, it does reveal specific details regarding the reported abuse many female cast and crew members experienced during filming Buffy. The allegations of abuse made against Whedon first surfaced in early 2021, and more of Buffy's female cast and crew members have come forward with additional claims since then.
This was apparently not the only encounter like this that Bergstrom had experienced this treatment from Joss, as there was another one in which she details Whedon ended up grabbing her arm so tightly that he left scratch marks. Unfortunately this is only one account in a slew from women who Whedon has attacked and abused throughout the making of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and most likely even before and after that. Hopefully, long-time fans as well as cast and crew members of Buffy will see Whedon face some form of accountability either in a court of law or publicly - this cannot continue to be tolerated whatsoever.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is available to stream on Hulu.