As news of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot came out, other tragic news also happened. Michelle Trachtenberg, who played Dawn Summers for three seasons of the series, passed away at the age of 39. She will be missed by the cast of the original series, and it turns out that Sarah Michelle Gellar and others have ideas to honor the actress.
Trachtenberg passed away suddenly in February 2025 at the age of 39. A later autopsy would reveal that it was linked to her liver transplant that she received a year earlier, making the loss even more tragic. Of course, there was hope before this that she would be part of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot to reprise her role as Dawn.
Sarah Michelle Gellar confirms Michelle Trachtenberg will be remembered in the Buffy reboot
Gellar and her Buffy co-star Alyson Hannigan talked to Parade about the past and the upcoming rebooted version of the series. It’s actually more of a revival, as Gellar will be part of the show as Buffy, and she will welcome Ryan Kiera Armstrong has a new Chosen One in New Sunnydale.
The question of Trachtenberg came up in the interview, with the 48-year-old actress confirming that there will be a way to honor her in the new series. It’s not clear how just yet, and it sounds like the writers haven’t considered the options just yet.
“Yeah, we'll do something. We'll do what's appropriate.” - Sarah Michelle Gellar
“I'm sure they'll handle it with utter grace.” - Alyson Hannigan
One of the ways to do it will be to find out that Dawn passed away at some point in the series. This could allow Buffy to mourn her sister in the way that the cast of the series have mourned Trachtenberg. This also opens the door for the fans to mourn the loss once more. However, that could be a little close to home, so it could be that Dawn is out there fighting demons and she’s mentioned in a positive light throughout the new series.
Explaining Dawn Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer
For the first four seasons of the series, Buffy Summers was an only child. Then suddenly, in the season 5 premiere, we found out that she had a sister. This was woven into the story, with Dawn being a ball of light, a key that the big villain of the season, Glory, was looking for. All of Dawn’s blood would open the doorway between Hell dimensions so that Glory could get home.
The gates between the Hell dimensions and Earth would remain open until the last of Dawn’s blood was spilled, meaning that Dawn would have to die to protect Earth. Buffy learned that Dawn was fashioned from her own blood, and that meant that they were both the same. In the end, Buffy sacrificed her own life to protect her sister, and Dawn was around in the series until the very end.
When a threat against all Potential Slayers came about in the final season, Dawn was disappointed and annoyed to find out that she wasn’t a Potential, despite having Buffy’s blood. However, she would end up fighting against the First in any way that she could, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer ended with her, Buffy, and the others looking at the crater that was once Sunnydale wondering what would be next.
It’s clear that Dawn wouldn’t give up the fight, and this is the best way to honor Trachtenberg in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot.
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot will stream on Hulu.