Buffy the Vampire Slayerhit theaters in 1992 and, looking back, boasts an impressive cast of well-known actors. The film arrived riding a vampire movie revival wave that was spurred by ‘80s classics likeFright NightandThe Lost Boys, and arguably peaked with another film from1992,Bram Stoker’s Dracula. While Francis Ford Coppola’s stylish film emerged as a dark, brooding epic,Buffytook a lighter approach,mixing sunny high-school comedy with an old-fashioned, somewhat campy take on vampires(much to thedismay of its writer Joss Whedon, who wanted something darker).
Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s ensemble was headed up by Kristy Swanson as the titular cheerleader-turned-slayer-of-vampires. The rest of the movie’s cast was filled out with an interesting array of actors,some of whom were already very famous, and some of whom would later become famous, and even win Oscars.Looking back, the cast of thefailedBuffy the Vampire Slayermoviemight be filled with more stars than any other vampire film.
10Hilary Swank
As Kimberley, Buffy’s Friend And Fashion Rival
The future two-time Oscar-winner made her feature film debut as Buffy’s frenemy Kimberley, who memorably disses a yellow jacket Buffy has her eye on, only to turn around and buy the jacket herself, and lose it after lending it to the doomed Cassandra (Natasha Gregson Wagner). Kimberley survives the carnage at the gymnasium, but does get knocked cold by Principal Murray (Stephen Root), who doesn’t seem too upset to have rendered one of his students unconscious.
Hilary Swank’s star rose quickly afterBuffy. She headlinedThe Next Karate Kidin 1994 and really broke out when she won an Oscar for 1999’sBoys Don’t Cry.Swank’s star continued to rise and she ultimately landed a second Oscar victory for 2004’sMillion Dollar Baby. She most recently led the TV showAlaska Dailyand appeared inYellowjacketsseason 3.
9Ben Affleck
As Basketball Player 10
Another early role for a future Oscar-winner, Ben Affleck, appears uncredited as Basketball Player 10. In a scene reminiscent ofTeen Wolf, he surrenders the basketball without a fight to a vampiric Grueller (Sasha Jenson), who proceeds to dunk it. Basketball Player 10 has only one line, “Take it man,”but the voice heard is not Affleck’s, as he was re-dubbed by another actor. TheGood Will HuntingOscar-winner toldJames Cordenabout the humiliating experience in a 2023 interview:
I sounded very different, and I realized right then, they re-recorded my lines. I was so bad, they needed me to be in the scene, but the director obviously [thought], ‘I can’t hear the voice again!’ They had to pay someone to come in and say, ‘hey man, take it’ because apparently I couldn’t say that convincingly enough.
In 1992, Affleck being uncredited made sense as he wasn’t a household name yet. That changed thanks to his work inChasing AmyandGood Will Hunting(for which he won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay) later in the ’90s. By the time the 2000s and 2010s rolled around, Affleck was a major star and has even gone on to play Batman. Most recently, he starred inThe Accountant 2and found success as a director.
8Thomas Jane
As Zeph
He would later play The Punisher in the 2004 Marvel Comics adaptation but that wasn’t Thomas Jane’s first comic adaptation. That came inBuffy the Vampire Slayer, which was only his second film. In it,Jane is almost unrecognizable as Zeph, the garage owner who employs Luke Perry’s Pike as a mechanic. Zeph’s big scene sees him bidding Pike farewell, after his former employee decides Los Angeles is becoming a little too vampire-filled for his tastes.
Jane’s career as a supporting actor grew steadily throughout the ‘90s, and in the 2000s he got his big starring break inThe Punisher, credited as “Tom Jane.” The pre-MCU Marvel movie was a flop though, and its star didn’t quite make it to the A-list, though he’s had a solid career as a supporting actor and occasional lead in small movies. That includes appearances inScott Pilgrim vs. The World, Face/Off,and Stephen King’sThe Mist.
7David Arquette
As Benny, Pike’s Dirtbag Sidekick
David Arquette had a big 1992, starring in a trio of movies, includingBuffy, which saw him playing Pike’s sidekick Benny, who is turned into a vampire by a bite from Paul Reubens’ Amilyn. He shows up at Pike’s place, floating spookily outside his second-floor window in one of the movie’s most memorable scenes. Pike is savvy enough not to invite Benny in, and quickly makes the decision to blow town. He doesn’t leave, of course, and ends up facing Benny during the climax at the gym, where he kills his former bestie with electricity.
He went on to play Dewey inScreama few years later, reprising the role four times, with another appearance booked for 2025’sScream 7.
Buffywould not be Arquette’s last brush with the horror-comedy genre and he had his biggest role in that subgenre. He went on to play Dewey inScreama few years later, reprising the role four times, with another appearance booked for 2025’sScream 7. Outside of that franchise, he’s mostly appeared in small films but has a second career as a professional wrestler.
6Donald Sutherland
As Merrick, The Watcher
Donald Sutherland was a major star in the 1970s (thanks toMASH,Kelly’s Heroes,Animal House), and later segued into a prolific career as a character actor, often playing mysterious authority figures.Buffysees him cast as Merrick, the eternal watcher who must identify the Chosen One in each generation, and train her to kill vampires. Merrick has a contentious relationship with the headstrong Buffy, but nevertheless is able to prepare her for her bloody task, before himself being killed by the main villain, Lothos (Rutger Hauer).
Sutherland angeredBuffyscreenwriter Whedon by re-writing dialog, causing Whedon to call him “rude.”
Sutherland continued to have a strong career for decades afterBuffy the Vampire Slayer. Whether it was in 2005’sPride and Prejudiceadaptation, as the villainous President Snow inThe Hunger Gamesfranchise, or winning a Golden Globe forPath to War, Sutherland remained in the public eye. Unfortunately, the star passed away in 2024 at the age of 88.
5Luke Perry
As Pike, Buffy’s Unlikely Love Interest
Luke Perry was already a TV star, thanks toBeverly Hills 90210,when he signed on forBuffy,playing the rebellious Pike, who starts out making Buffy sick, but later becomes her love interest and vampire-slaying sidekick. It’s through her growing relationship with the outcast Pike that Buffy is shown to shed her frivolous, class-conscious ways, evolving from a feather-headed cheerleader into a serious-minded woman on a mission, who still enjoys going to a dance now and then.
Despite his best efforts, Perry never quite shed his90210heartthrob image. That said, he still found tons of success, appearing inOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Fifth Element, and as Archie’s dad Fred Andrews onRiverdale. That was his final role as he passed away in 2019 at the age of 52 andRiverdalehonored him soon after.
4Seth Green
As A Random Vampire
Seth Green plays a random member of Lothos’ vampire crew and is nearly unrecognizable under his vampire makeup.Green has claimed he was cut from the movie entirely, but he indeed can be glimpsed – unless there was another actor in the movie who looked a lot like Green – in the final gymnasium showdown sequence, grouped with several of Lothos’ minions, who are all taunting Buffy. It appears to be Green, seen from behind, who receives one of Buffy’s gymnastic kicks.
Seth Green would be much easier to spot in subsequent movies, includingAustin Powers, in a scene-stealing performance as Scott Evil.He would also get his shot at a bigger role in theBuffyfranchise, playing Daniel “Oz” Osbourne on the TV series. Green remains very active in 2025, including roles on his showRobot Chickenand in the MCU voicing Howard the Duck.
3Ricki Lake
As Charlotte, A Waitress
Ricki Lake initially became a star thanks to her debut performance in John Waters’Hairspray, later working with Waters again inCry-Baby.Her appearance inBuffyis a blink-and-you-miss-it moment as Charlotte, a waitress who serves Pike and Benny, who only have enough money in their pockets for a pair of hot dogs. Benny loses his dog when he uses it as a prop to lewdly approach Buffy, and she slices it neatly in half with a butter knife.
Ultimately, Ricki Lake would do more movies post-Buffy, including a cameo for 2007’sHairsprayremake, but her greatest fame came on the small screen. From 1993 to 2004, she had her own daytime talk show,Ricki Lake, which was a staple of its era. In 2012, she hosted a second series,The Ricki Lake Show, which didn’t last long but saw her win a Daytime Emmy Award.
2Paul Reubens
As Amilyn, Lothos' Right-Hand-Man
Reubens will forever be identified with his iconic creation Pee-Wee Herman, but he did occasionally take on other characters, infusing them with his uniquely strange personality.Buffyis indeed one of his more memorable non-Pee-Wee movies. In it he plays Amilyn, Lothos’ right-hand-man – who loses his left hand when it’s clipped off by a tree as he rides on top of Pike’s van.
Amilyn was originally to be played by Joan Chen, but was re-written for a male actor after theTwin Peaksstar dropped out.
Amilyn later becomes disillusioned with Lothos, who doesn’t show him a lot of respect. The one-armed vampire dies by a stake through his heart from Buffy,in a hilarious extended death scene improvised by Reubens (more of which pops up at the end of the credits). Paul Reubens actually reprised his role fromBuffyin a cameo onWhat We Do in the Shadowsalongside other actors who played vampires in movies and TV shows. Reubens passed away in 2023, leaving behind a rich comedic legacy.
1Stephen Root
As Principal Murray
The 1980s and 90s marked a golden age for on-screen school administrators. The job of these authority figures is often to be mocked and humiliated by rebellious protagonists (Jeffrey Jones’Ferris Buellercharacter being a prime example), butBuffyslightly subverts the trope with Principal Murray, played by familiar character actor Stephen Root, who went on to appear in another vampire project,True Blood, years later.
Murray is depicted as silly in the scene where he has a talk with Buffy about her absences from school, bragging lamely about his drug experience during a Doobie Brothers concert, while Buffy completely ignores him, being too busy killing a fly by spitting a thumbtack at it. But, unusually for such a character in a movie of the era, Murray is ultimately somewhat triumphant, hilariously dispensing detentions to the dead vampire students strewn all over the gymnasium afterBuffy the Vampire Slayer’s climactic battle.
