2025 is shaping up to be a busy year for Sarah Michelle Gellar. As revealed by Deadline, the star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer has signed on to star in and executive produce Bad Summer People, a TV series adaptation of the bestselling novel by Emma Rosenblum.
As per the report, Cara DiPaolo (No Good Deed) is set to write and executive produce the project, produced by Linden Productions (Family Switch) and A+E Studios (The Lincoln Lawyer). The studio is developing the series internally before taking it out to buyers. Also executive producing are Riva Marker and Deanna Barillari with Linden Productions, and JoAnne Colonna.
Bad Summer People has drawn comparisons to The White Lotus making it a hope property for adaption. The story is set in the idyllic fictional town of Salcombe, Fire Island, and follows a sequence of life shattering events when a body is discovered off the side of the boardwalk. The series will be centered on frenemies and master manipulators, Jen Weinstein and Lauren Parker. They, alongside their husbands, childhood friends Sam and Jason, have summered together on the island for years, but this summer everything will come to a head as lifelong grudges and secrets are unearthed.
Gellar continues to appear in a recurring role on the Showtime series Dexter: Original Sin and is set to continue on the upcoming second season. Known for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, she will reprise her titular role in the Buffyverse Hulu pilot from 20th Television and Searchlight TV, directed by Chloé Zhao. She is repped by CAA, Linden Entertainment and Yorn Levine Barnes.