So many people out there work their asses off so damn hard to try to position themselves for success in the movie business. And once in a while we see someone who is just perfectly positioned for success… and for one reason or another just piss the opportunity away like lukewarm beer through their system on a tree at the side of the highway. Case in point… Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Coming off her amazing popularity and success with Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Gellar was a VERY hot commodity, and to say she was positioned for success is like saying Pamela Anderson showed a little skin in her home video. She was all set to become a HUGE movie star… but dreams of that happening are far gone now do to 3 main reasons:
1) Monumentally stupid choices
Ok, you’re sarah Michelle Gellar… you’re coming off a hit TV show, you have a huge and devoted following and you’re ready to break out as a legitimate leading women on the big screen. What should you do? Why, you should do a couple of Scooby Doo movies obviously! BILLIANT! That’ll get you taken seriously! She did a pretty decent job on Cruel Intentions BEFORE jumping the Buffy ship… but really since then she’s just made terrible decisions. The Grudge? The Return? Please…
2) She’s been exposed
On Buffy she WAS Buffy… so talent wasn’t an issue really. Scooby Doo isn’t an acting role… so you can’t really tell…. but with The Grudge and ESPECIALLY with The Return her basic lack of big league talent was exposed. She was poor in Grudge, and she was downright awful in The Return (It looked like she was sleepwalking through most of that movie). I think she’s better than she’s shown in those 2 films, but someone with true heavyweight talent wouldn’t have let that happen… Gellar doesn’t have heavyweight talent.
3) The Honeymoon is over
For a time after Buffy, there was a grace period. Ok, Scooby Doo was a mistake… we still lover her… she’ll be fine. Ok, Scooby Doo 2 was a mistake… we still love her… she’ll be fine. Grudge could have been worse… we still… ummmm… LIKE her… I hope she’ll be fine. The Return was… ok screw it, Buffy has been off the air for years… time to move on. We’ve gone from hearing Gellar is in a movie and reacting with a “oh really?” to hearing she’s in a movie and having a lot of people go “meh”.
Is Sarah Michelle Gellar’s career over? Not at all. Her big window of opportunity has shut… but that’s not to say she couldn’t honestly open it again. But to do that, I think there are several things she needs to do at this point:
1) Get Help
Acting help. She can no longer rely on “hey, that’s the buffy girl” image to get her by. She has some talent, but she needs to deepen those chops. Get her in with a solid acting coach to work with for a few years and commit to developing her talent… not getting opportunities.
2) Make better choices
However Southland Tales turns out (To say it’s getting mixed reviews is an understatement), it was still a GOOD decision to get involved with that movie. A smaller film from the guy who did Donnie Darko is a huge step up from the dreck she’s been doing. Keep making decisions like that one… small, better films… and she’ll re-develop a better rep
3) Don’t Abandon Buffy
I know it sounds strange to say this… but I think it would be the wrong move on the part of her PR people to try to distance her from her persona as Buffy. Don’t do a Buffy movie, or play bufy again, but at the same time embrace the face she had in the role and continue to appeal to the fans she had… while at the same time being committed to moving on and showing she’s evolved.
Will Sarah Michelle Gellar ever be a legitimate A-List actress in Hollywood? If I had to put money on it I’d say no. However, that’s not to say she doesn’t have a chance, or that she still couldn’t have a solid respectable career… she just needs to wise up.
I think you’re giving her waaaay too much credit. The only think SMG is good at is playing a bitch – other than that, she can’t act to save her life and while she can look attractive, she’s really nothing to write home about. More often than not, I find myself thinking she looks hideous.
(Type your comment here. Make sure you’ve read the commenting rules before doing so)The observation that you make with which I agree most is Gellar’s inability to select good roles. She doesn’t seem to be able to judge between a good, solid part and a stupid, worthless part. She seems to want nothing more than to be on the screen. I hope she survives, because she can be good when she has a decent script, as she proved on “Buffy,” but she’ll be gone and forgotten sooner rather than later if she keeps accepting any part in any film. Wake up, Sarah! Giles isn’t around anymore to save you from yourself.
As an actor myself, watching Sarah act was always a treat for me so while I respect your right to your opinion. I completely disagree with you. I have seen Sarah Michelle Gellar completely immersed in moments and just watching her heart BREAKING at times on screen.
Truly one of the few legit talented young hollywood actresses of our generation.
geez guys leave her alone you’re just jeaulous
she’s a great actress that’s why her movies hit huge popularity OK
I agree with many of the points but i believe SMG does have acting chops. Just looking at the Buffy series and you see a young actress grow and display a plethora of emotions, sometimes in one episode. (examples are “The Body”, “Once More With Feeling”, “Becoming II”, etc) SMG can act she just needs to find good material. I think choosing Southland Tales was a smart move and you guys should check out her new movie coming out in January called “The Air I Breathe” (great cast; looks quite promising;almost oscar worthy). I think she is just beginning to enter her post buffy phase and im excited to see what she stirs up. Rock on sarah!
Contrary to popular belief doing Tv is not a stepdown from movies. Hell there is a lot of TV-shows that are better than most movies released today.
I too think that a return to a tv show could help her career. After all, look at how many forgotten actor/actresses have gone that route and resurrected their careers lately.
I thought she was great in Harvard Man. I know that there were many aspects of that movie that could have been done better, but as a whole I enjoyed it. Her character in it was alot like in Cruel Intentions, so maybe the hot (don’t really know how she couldn’t be) b*tchy girl is one she should revisit often.
she is hot and looks great in southland tales and cant wait to see her in it. i hope she does some great horror movies and stay away from remakes and other crap like that but pick good stuff but i can sstill watch her
I’m also interested in the “Alice” movie. I’ve played the game and American McGee is apparently heavily involved in the movie. 2008 it comes out.
Could be good. Or not. Who knows. It’s done by the dude who did Texas Chainsaw Massacre (remake) so who knows.
David Boreanaz wised up after “Valentine” and “Crow Wicked Prayer”. I say Sarah M Gellar should also go back into a TV series because “The Return” don’t cut it. I wasn’t a huge fan of “The Grudge” remakes either [note, Gio: she wasn’t in ALL of Grudge 2]
But should we count the first “Scream” and “I Know What The Hell You Were Not Supposed To Do Last Summer”? ? ? I ***strongly*** disagree with you John. I think she should either go back to TV or haul butt and stay far away from the horror genre [or what passes off as horror] AND Buffy.
Southland Tales is the best move she made in years.
Some people just do want the aggravation of being really famous. Its been said that a vast majority of them are just in it for the paychecks. Sarah and her husband Freddie Prinze, Jr seem to be of that ilk.
She needs to go the indie circuit and work her way up. Throw in a few nude scenes and she’ll be up there again.
She is capable of more than Buffy. I really believe that she rocked in Cruel Intentions, and that flick would have suffered if she wasn’t there. She can do it, she just needs to pick better shit. Then again, her name isn’t really big anymore, she’s accepting shit to pay the bills, but nobody goes to see that shit. I like her, and I hope she can get her groove back.
She doesn’t have the talent. She’ll be baring it all in some “Monster’s Ball” type role to try and gain a following again soon.
It is really a shame that she has not done better in her movie roles. She needs to be smarter about what films she chooses to play in.
I disagree about the Buffy thing. I think she SHOULD play Buffy in a movie. Joss Whedon directing bring back all the characters from the show including Angel and do a movie to finish the story. It would be awesome.
She was great as Buffy, and I wish she’d go back to the well. Do some made-for-sci channel movies or something. Buffy’s still got a strong fanbase, sh’ed have tons of income if she played to it (showing up at shows and stuff). But I understand her wanitng to distance herself. David boreanaz, who played Angel, did the same. he’s found moderate success with “Bones” on Fox, I don’t know what SMG is gonna do though…She may be done.
My bad, Southland Tales is going to premiere any moment (thank you imdb) and she’s currently working on a remake of Lewis Carrol’s Alice in Wonderland “based on the computer game American McGee’s Alice”. I can’t say that I’ve played the game that much but the artwork was always interesting. It could do a piggybackride on all the Bioshock-hype.
She’s currently working on “Southland Tales”. Yes it’s with Seann William Scott and The Rock, but written/directed by Richard “Donnie Darko” Kelly.
I will always love Sarah Michelle Gellar for her role as Buffy but yea she hasn’t been in anything i have liked in a long time. although i do have to say i enjoyed her as April in TMNT, and i am looking foward to Southland Tales.
I could neveer really stand her. Never liked her “acting ability” myself.