Buffy fans call for Spike's return after cryptic James Marsters statement on reboot

Despite his role in the show's finale making it seem impossible for him to return, fans are wondering if the creative team behind the new reboot have found a way thanks to his recent comments.

In a video on Instagram, Marsters said: "First of all, I think I'm just gonna get the elephant in the room out of the way, which is that it's not a good thing for me to talk about the Buffy reboot.

"I'm sorry if you were coming here hoping for some news, but in the interests of having the project be the best it can be, it's best that I keep my mouth shut right now, so I'm gonna do that...

"I'm very excited that we're gonna learn more about the journey of Buffy Summers and how she saves the world because I think the world needs her. So I'm gonna do my part by doing nothing right now."

Of course, the video has led to fans calling for Spike's return and speculating that it's going to happen, with one commenting: "For me, there is no Buffy reunion without you as Spike! It would be like a sequel without one of the main characters."

"Spike is back 100% !!!!" another said, while one more commented: "I truly hope you'll be part of this project with Sarah! The world needs Buffy, but it needs Spike just as much!"

Another viewer said: "I hope we get to see Spike again!!!"

Sarah Michelle Gellar recently confirmed that a Buffy reboot is in the works, helmed by director Chloé Zhao.

Other cast members who have spoken out on the news include Angel actor David Boreanaz, who suggested he won't be returning, and Drusilla actress Juliet Landau, who told RadioTimes.com that she'd love to return.

In terms of the storyline of the show, bringing back Spike would be complicated but not impossible. Here's your spoiler warning!

In the Buffy finale episode, Spike is killed off in a blaze of glory - but then in season 5 of Angel, he's resurrected and brought back as a regular character, with his status left up in the air at the end of the show.

Marsters also returned to the character of Spike for the Audible story Slayers, which saw him working undercover in Los Angeles.

While Slayers is not technically a canon story, it doesn't contradict the canon continuity of the show. So, all in all, it would be very feasible for Spike to return for the Buffy reboot.

The actor previously spoke to RadioTimes.com, looking back on Spike's role in Buffy, recalling that the writers "never really knew what to do" with him.

"The original idea for Buffy was that that vampires were just metaphors for the challenges of high school, or the challenges of life," he recalled.

"They were designed to be overcome, they were designed to die. Buffy is not an Anne Rice kind of thing, where you're supposed to feel for the vampires. It's why we're hideously ugly when we bite someone, they did not want that to be a sensual kind of thing. It was supposed to be horrific."

Marsters added: "So trying to fit Spike long-term into that kind of show is a weird fit.

"And so they were always, like, coming to me at the beginning of every season saying, 'We don't know what to do with you! We have a plan for the season, we have a plan for all the other characters, we have all the arcs of all the other characters, we just don't know what to do with you again.'

"And because they were so creative, they were able to figure something out. But what it meant was I think that I was plugged into the other arcs.

"I was the villain, and then I was the wacky neighbour, and then I was the wrong boyfriend, and then I was the fallen man trying to redeem himself. And then ultimately a kind of guinea pig hero by the end."

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is available to stream on Disney Plus.

Check out more of our Fantasy coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.