Sarah Michelle Gellar, Buffy Stars Pay Tribute

The cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is paying tribute to Nicholas Brendon after news of his death was revealed Friday.

Brendon’s family shared the news of his death in a statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter, which reads, “We are heartbroken to share the passing of our brother and son, Nicholas Brendon. He passed in his sleep of natural causes.”

“Nicky loved to share his enthusiastic talent with his family, friends and fans. He was passionate, sensitive, and endlessly driven to create. Those who truly knew him understood that his art was one of the purest reflections of who he was,” the statement continued. “While it’s no secret that Nicholas had struggles in the past, he was on medications and treatment to manage his diagnosis and he was optimistic about the future at the time of his passing. Our family asks for privacy during this time as we grieve his loss and celebrate the life of a man who lived with intensity, imagination, and heart.”

The actor previously revealed in 2023 that he suffered a heart attack and had been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect. He also had cauda equina syndrome, which led to several spinal surgeries. 

Sarah Michelle Gellar, the title character, took to Instagram Saturday morning to share a tribute. “‘They’ll never know how tough it is to be the one who isn’t chosen. To live so near to the spotlight, and never step in it. But I know. I see more than anybody realizes, because nobody’s watching me,’ I saw you Nicky. I know you are at peace, in that big rocking chair in the sky,” she wrote quoting his character, Xander, in the show, along with a nostalgic photo of the pair.

David Boreanaz, who played Angel in the series before starring in his own spinoff, also penned a tribute Saturday morning. “There are people you work with and then there are people you share time with. Nick was the latter,” he wrote on Instagram with a throwback photo of them together. “Some moments stay small on paper, a laugh between takes, a look that says we got this, the quiet understanding of showing up and doing the work together. But those are the things that last.”

He continued, “He carried something real, not perfect, not polished, just real. And in this business, that matters more than most things. We don’t always get to choose how long someone stays in the story, only that they were here. And he was …Rest easy Brother. Some people leave a mark without trying.”

Charisma Carpenter, who played Cordelia Chase and was one of Xander’s love interests in the horror drama, shared a lengthy tribute accompanied by a carousel of photos from filming. “I will miss the version of the man I once knew — someone who was so warm and loving. He was cuddly, funny, silly, self-deprecating, and supremely talented,” she wrote in part. “I loved every scene we had together back in the day. He always kept me on my toes, never delivering a line the same way twice, forcing me to become a better actor by listening.”

Carpenter added, “I will always remember him in my mind’s eye, in his trailer with the door wide open, in his rocking chair, smoking a cigarette and listening to music. From his trailer, which my window faced on the lot, I could hear all the bands that exemplify the 90s but are also, for me, tied up in the memory of Nicky. Bands like: Oasis, Red Hot Chili Peppers, STP, Foo Fighters, OMC, Green Day, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Sublime, Creed, Barenaked Ladies, Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Lauryn Hill, Blink-182, 311, Blur, Garbage, Counting Crows, Goo Goo Dolls. I miss those days and cling to those memories of him today.”

Alyson Hannigan, who starred alongside Brendon in all seven seasons of Buffy, penned a heartfelt tribute on Instagram Friday. “My Sweet Nicky, thank you for years of laughter, love and Dodgers. I will think of you every time I see a rocking chair.  I love you. RIP,” she wrote under a photo of them both.

Emma Caulfield Ford, who joined during the show’s third installment and portrayed Scooby gang member Anya Jenkins, took to her Instagram Stories on Friday night, writing, “My heart is so heavy. I can’t put into words just yet how this has hit me.” She shared a clip of Brendon on the series, adding, “Let this clip of us giving it our all be a place holder. Rest Nicky. Rest. I love you.”

David Greenwalt, who was a writer, director and executive producer on the show, also paid tribute in a statement shared with The Hollywood Reporter: “They were the Beatles, a truly Fab Four for a new generation: Sarah, Nicky, Ali and Charisma. Mr. Whedon was, of course, the George Martin to us all.  Nicky was an original, long-ball funny, able to leap towering emotional changes in a single bound. Overflowing with timing, talent, Mr. Brendon never stopped bouncing, weaving and bonding to one and all alike. One like this shall not come again, but we got to see it and breathe it and live it with Nicky by our side. And that no man taketh away.” 

Brendon’s death comes a little over a year after his Buffy co-star Michelle Trachtenberg died at age 39.

Read more tributes to Brendon below.