Of all the remakes and revivals currently in the works, the one that is most related to teenage sex and backstabbing is NBC’s upcoming return to the salacious world of Cruel Intentions. With a story that would follow some of the film’s characters in the years after they were last seen, the biggest question since it was first announced involved who, if anyone, would be returning to reprise their roles. Well we can knock one name off of that speculative list, as Sarah Michelle Gellar has confirmed she will once again become the duplicitous Kathryn Merteuil for the pilot.
Sarah Michelle Gellar actually dropped the news of her casting herself on social media, so there’s no chance that this was just a rumor based on a rumor based on a dream-casting tweet a fan of the movie shared one time. Her involvement was teased recently when it became public knowledge that she’d received the pilot’s script and was reportedly mulling it over. I guess the story and writing must have been good enough to build her confidence up enough to take it on. Works for us.
Cruel Intentions: The 2016 Version will follow Kathryn as she attempts the double-headed goal of taking over Valmont International and gaining custody of Bash Casey, the son of the late Sebastian Valmont (played by Ryan Phillippe in the film) and Annette Hargrove (played originally by Reese Witherspoon). It appears to be a rare shift in subject matter that aims to appeal to the same fanbase of the original, rather than simply a new population of horndog teenagers. That said, I’m sure Bash’s story will include lots of underaged debauchery and the like, keeping it in line with the original even while adult plots are also happening.
You can check out Sarah Michelle Gellar’s announcement below, which contains a very interesting piece of news.
Gellar is there with the film’s writer/director Roger Kumble, who is filling both of those jobs in the small screen version, and producer Neal Moritz, who is also back. That’s cool and all, but she mentions that this is the eve of the production for the pilot, which is way sooner than I expected this thing to kick into gear. That also means the rest of the cast must already be set in stone. Just yesterday, American Crime’s Taylor John Smith was cast as Bash Casey, while The Fosters’ Samantha Logan will play Cassidy, the silver spoon daughter of Kathryn’s husband Pascal. Who else will be lurking around on set?
So while we’ll probably never see Sarah Michelle Gellar returning to the role of Buffy Summers for a vampire-slaying reunion, at least we know we’ll see her taking another past role that wasn’t anywhere near as popular. Stay tuned for news on whether NBC decides to move forward with the pilot or not.
