Melanie Lynskey has a ton of hit TV shows under her belt, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer was almost one of them!
During a recent interview with Evan Ross Katz's Shut Up Evan: The Newsletter, Melanie clarified a statement Sarah Michelle Gellar made about the show's creator, Joss Whedon, originally wanting Melanie to play the role of Buffy's best friend, Willow Rosenberg.
Sarah also claimed there was an issue with Melanie's visa, which prevented her from auditioning, but the New Zealand native revealed that was only partially true.
"It is basically true," Melanie told Evan Ross Katz. "It was kind of a visa issue, but not really. I also was not sure about doing television at that time."
"It was very early in my career. I had a very old-school agent who was like, 'TV? That’s for has-beens!' and I was like, 'I don't think it is anymore.'"
Melanie went on to reveal that she "just wasn't super into" the part at the time. She went to dinner with Joss, who tried to convince her to join the show or at least, just audition for the role.
"So, I auditioned. Then: 'Oh, they didn't like what you were wearing,'" Melanie recalled. "It was a whole process. And then I didn't get it!"
"Alyson Hannigan got it, who was absolutely wonderful, and all was [cast] as it should have been. That was the actual story."
Alyson went on to play Willow for all seven seasons of the iconic series, after the actor who was cast in the pilot episode was replaced.
To learn more about Melanie, be sure to check out her full Shut Up Evan: The Newsletter interview.
And if you're in the mood for a Buffy the Vampire Slayer rewatch, all seasons can be found on Hulu.