Buffy the Vampire Slayer star James Marsters revealed he had difficulty after filming the show's sixth season, which premiered in 2001.
Marsters, who famously played the bleach blond, leather-clad vampire Spike, explained he was upset by a scene in Season 6, Episode 19 ("Seeing Red"), during a September 2024 interview on actor Michael Rosenbaum's podcast, Inside of You.
"Buffy sent me into therapy actually. Buffy crushed me," said Marsters during the podcast interview.
He explained that "Seeing Red" had a distressing scene wherein Spike tries to assault Buffy Summers, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar. He noted that "it's a problematic scene for a lot of people who like the show." Marsters also said he warned the show's writers that the fans would find the episode disturbing.
In addition, he said that he has made an effort to never audition for film or television shows with "sexual predation scenes." Marsters, who didn't want to participate in the scene, said he was obligated to do so because he " was contracted" as an actor.
"It's the darkest professional day of my life," said Marsters while speaking to Rosenbaum.
He then said he decided to seek mental health treatment after shooting the episode. According to Marsters, speaking to a therapist was beneficial.
"I found a really good therapist and in putting me back together from that got into all the other stuff as the good therapists will do. And it was very painful and very destabilizing. But I came out of it a much happier person," said the actor during the 2024 interview.
James Marsters Spoke Positively About Sarah Michelle Gellar
During a May 2025 appearance at the Chicago Galaxy Con, Marsters praised Gellar, who starred as Buffy on Buffy the Vampire Slayer throughout its seven-season run until 2003. Marsters said he didn't believe the show would have continued for seven seasons if not for Gellar. He explained that the show's cast and crew worked between 12 and 20 hours a day, with Gellar "in almost every scene."
"I was in about a quarter of the scenes, and I felt like they burnt me to ash. Sarah was always on time. She always had a great attitude. She always knew her lines perfectly. She always met her marks," said the 63-year-old actor to the panel's audience.
He said while he would "have had a nervous breakdown under that workload and the pressure" of playing Buffy, Gellar "bore it all effortlessly."
In addition, he said he and Gellar had respect for each other because they both were professional and knew their lines.
"She's an amazing person. So like we always got along really well," said Marsters, who joined the Buffy the Vampire Slayer cast during the show's second season.
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