Stars who appeared in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff, Angel, are lending support to actor Charisma Carpenter after she spoke out against the shows’ creator, Joss Whedon, on Wednesday.
“While I am proud to have my name associated with Buffy Summers, I don’t want to be forever associated with the name Joss Whedon,” said Sarah Michelle Gellar, who played the vampire-hunting protagonist, in an Instagram post.
“I stand with all survivors of abuse and am proud of them for speaking out,” she said.
“Thank you @sarahmgellar for saying this,” added her costar Michelle Trachtenberg, who played Dawn, Buffy Summers’ younger sister. “I am brave enough now as a 35 year old woman….To repost this. Because. This must. Be known. As a teenager. With his not appropriate behavior.”
“We know what he did,” she added in an Instagram story. “Behind. The. Scenes.”
Other actors on Buffy also sent their support, including Amber Benson (Tara) and Clare Kramer (Glory).
In a Twitter post Wednesday, Carpenter, who played Cordelia Chase, accused Whedon of abusive and vindictive behavior to her on set, specifically while she was pregnant.
Carpenter said Whedon said she was “fat,” mocked her religious beliefs, made her shoot late at night despite her pregnancy, and then “unceremoniously” fired her once she gave birth.
“Back then, I felt powerless and alone,” she said. “With no other option, I swallowed the mistreatment and carried on.”
Carpenter said she spoke out because she had participated in a Warner Media investigation into Whedon’s behavior on the set of Justice League that was prompted by allegations from actor Ray Fisher of abusive behavior by Whedon. Carpenter said she believed Fisher.
Whedon’s representatives did not respond to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News.