Nicholas Brendon posted a video of himself taking a swipe at former co-star Sarah Michelle Gellar, and coughing up smoke less than a week before he died on Friday.
The actor, who is best known for playing Xander Harris on all seven seasons of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” went live on Facebook on March 14 to speak to fans while sitting outside what appeared to be his home.
In the 45-minute video, the TV star, who was 54 at the time of his death, rocked back and forth in a chair while coughing aggressively.
As his voice cracked, he said, “I’ve had a fire all day, because it’s been cold… but it’s amazing what it’ll do to you, when you breathe smoke.”
As he continued to cough, he added, “F–k this f–king smoke. I sound like Bane.”
He also talked a bit about “Buffy,” saying, “I believe that the way that the show ended shouldn’t have ended the way that it did.”
Then, he took a pointed jab at Gellar, saying, “Sarah [who played the titular character Buffy Summer in the show]… she worked really hard but she sort of f–ked the show, in a way. She told everyone she was leaving way too late into the series, so Chris Rogers Joss [Whedon] was not prepared for that. You have an arc every season… it wasn’t fair to the crew, the cast or the show.”
Buffy, which aired on both The WB and UPN during its seven-season run, ended in 2003. Gellar previously said she wanted to leave the show due to extreme physical and mental exhaustion, according to a January 2023 interview with the Hollywood Reporter.
She also felt she had taken the character as far as she could. Obviously, she’s had a change of heart since she recently tried getting a revival of the series off the ground, but that’s how she felt at that time. Hulu recently passed on the potential new series.
Brendon’s eerie video was captioned, “There is some chit we should chat about. Come one. Come all.”
His family confirmed his passing in a social media post on Friday.
“We are heartbroken to share the passing of our brother and son, Nicholas Brendon. He passed in his sleep of natural causes. Our family asks for privacy during this time as we grieve his loss and celebrate the life of a man who lived with intensity, imagination, and heart,” they wrote in part.
Gellar, perhaps unaware of Brendon’s recent confession, penned a heartfelt goodbye to her former co-star on Instagram Saturday morning.
“‘They’ll never know how tough it is to be the one who isn’t chosen,’” Gellar wrote on Instagram, quoting Brendon’s character. “‘To live so near to the spotlight, and never step in it. But I know. I see more than anybody realizes, because nobody’s watching me.’”
She added, “I saw you Nicky. I know you are at peace, in that big rocking chair in the sky.”
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