Who plays Buffy Summers?

Who plays Buffy Summers? Sarah Michelle Gellar plays Buffy Summers in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Gellar portrayed Buffy throughout the show's seven seasons, which originally aired from 1997 to 2003, and also appeared as Buffy in the spin-off series Angel.

The character first appeared in the 1992 Buffy the Vampire Slayer film, where Kristy Swanson played her. That film version is the most common source of confusion in this question, but the television series recast the role with Gellar. Gellar's performance made Buffy one of television's best-known supernatural protagonists: a teenager balancing school, friendships, romance and the duty to fight vampires and demons.

Buffy was created by Joss Whedon as a reversal of the familiar horror-movie setup in which a young woman becomes the victim. On television, Buffy is the Slayer, a chosen fighter with enhanced strength and reflexes. Her closest allies include Willow Rosenberg, played by Alyson Hannigan, and Watcher Rupert Giles, played by Anthony Stewart Head.