Sarah Michelle Gellar has been facing off against monsters, demons, and masked killers on screen since the ’90s—so it’s only fitting she’s stepping back into her scream-queen era just in time for Halloween.
As reported by Barbara Roche’s Reel360, Gellar stars in a new horror-inspired campaign called 10 Days of Slay, which hilariously turns the everyday dread of car shopping into a spooky short film.
Partnering with Turo, the actress—who’s been married to Freddie Prinze Jr. since 2002—plays the ultimate “final girl” as a creepy car dealership transforms into a haunted maze of hidden fees and endless paperwork.
Just when it seems like the terror will never end, Sarah Michelle Gellar does what she does best—she fights her way out. It’s a clever nod to the countless chase scenes that made her a scream-queen legend in classics like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Scream 2, and I Know What You Did Last Summer.
Still, after years of dodging supernatural threats and masked killers, Gellar admits there’s one real-life fear she hasn’t quite conquered—car shopping. “I grew up in New York City, so cars were never really on my radar,” she said. “Even now, I find the whole process a little terrifying. When the idea came to me about treating it like a horror story, I thought, well, that makes sense.”
The timing couldn’t be more perfect. Every Halloween season, Gellar’s horror legacy reemerges, and her partnership with Turo lets her fully embrace it. The 10 Days of Slay campaign gives her a chance to play in the genre that made her famous while adding a fun, modern twist. “It’s always easy to lean into a good story,” she shared. “If you’re telling a good story, it doesn’t matter if it’s a commercial, a television show, or a movie—it’s all storytelling.”
That gift for storytelling has defined Gellar’s entire career. She first entered the spotlight as a child actor on All My Children, but it was her role as Buffy Summers in 1997 that made her a cultural icon. The character’s blend of strength, wit, and vulnerability struck a chord with fans and showcased Gellar’s unique ability to balance heart and humor. “Buffy’s very similar to me when I was growing up,” she once told Parade. “A child in an adult world, sort of trapped between the two.”
Now, decades later, Gellar continues to channel that same energy into every project she takes on. Next spring, she’s set to return to the big screen in Ready or Not 2, the sequel to the 2019 horror hit. Around the same time, she’ll lend her voice to the wild new animated series Breaking Bear, joining a star-studded cast that includes Brendan Fraser, Josh Gad, Elizabeth Hurley, and Annie Murphy. “It’s really out there for me, and I think people are going to love it,” she teased.
Even after all her years in Hollywood, Gellar says her choices now come from passion, not pressure. “If I’m going to leave my family to go work, it has to be something I want to be a part of,” she said. “I don’t feel like I have to prove myself anymore. It’s more about enjoying the people and the stories I’m working on.”
