Buffy: David Boreanaz on Meeting Sarah Michelle Gellar For First Time

Do we ever pass up an opportunity to cover pretty much anything and everything Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Probably not, especially when it involves Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers) and David Boreanaz (Angel). And thanks to Josh Horowitz, host of Paramount+‘s The Summit, we’re getting some insight into what attracted him to the role and what it was like meeting Gellar on the set of “Buffy” for the first time.

“I remember reading the breakdown. It was like… this vampire with a soul. He was 240-something years old, and he’s kinda like the ‘Joe Louis’ of fighters. You can knock him down, but he’s always gonna get back up… right? And I really identified with the fighter aspect of it,” Boreanaz shared as he explained what it was about Angel that attracted him to the role and allowed him to connect with the character. “Like, a character who’s gonna get back up no matter how many times he gets knocked down. So that was my kind of mantra going into that process of being cast for that role.”

As for meeting Gellar for the first time on the set, it didn’t take long for Boreanaz to be impressed by his co-star. “I meet Sarah for the first time on the set the day before I’m supposed to shoot the next day. And I remember walking into the set, it was very low ceilings, and there was a fight sequence going on, and there was Sarah, kind of in the distance. And, you know, I met her, and I was just amazed at how they just finished doing a scene, and the crew was breaking up and moving, and there she was. She was so bubbly and energetic and very kind. And there I am… just holding my cool, right? Just like, just whatever you do, you’ve been there, you’ve done that. Don’t ever show your weaknesses, right? I’m like… I’m dying on the inside. I go, ‘Yeah, you know, see you tomorrow at work… it’s gonna be great.’ I’ve never really done this before, ever in my life, right? So getting that job was huge,” the actor shared. Now here’s a look at an excerpt from the full interview:

Along with the Buffy/Angel conversation (beginning around the 7:25 mark), Boreanaz and Horowitz also discuss Bones and Paramount+’s SEAL Team. On the personal front, the actor opens up about his athletic day, work on behalf of veterans on SEAL Team & much more: