Then Teenage “Buffy” Star Reveals Embattled Joss Whedon Wasn’t Allowed to be Alone with her

After a slew of former “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” actresses spoke out about series creator Joss Whedon’s “misconduct” on the set of the hit series, the show’s then teenaged star claims he wasn’t allowed to be alone with her on set after an undescribed incident.

Michelle Trachtenberg, who played Buffy’s younger sister Dawn during the final half of the series, wrote on social media, “The last. Comment I will make on this. Was. There was a rule. Saying. He’s not allowed in a room alone with Michelle again.”

She had previously written a statement on Instagram supporting the statements of fellow “Buffy” actresses Sarah Michelle Gellar, Charisma Carpenter, and Amber Benson. “Thank you @sarahmgellar for saying this. 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….very. Not. Appropriate.”

Gellar released a statement on Wednesday addressing Carpenter’s allegations that Whedon had “traumatized” her while she worked under him on “Buffy” and the popular spinoff “Angel.”

“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,” Gellar wrote. “I am more focused on raising my family and surviving a pandemic currently so I will not be making any further statements. At this time, but I stand with all survivors of abuse and I’m proud of them for speaking out.”

The same day Carpenter had come out in support of “Justice League” actor Ray Fischer, who accused Whedon of “gross, abusive, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable” behavior on the set of the film. Fischer was later released from his role in the DC franchise follow-up “The Flash.”

“For nearly two decades, I have held my tongue and even made excuses for certain events that traumatized me to this day,” the Carpenter wrote. “Joss Whedon abused his power on numerous occasions while working together on sets of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. While he found his misconduct amusing, it only served to intensify my performance anxiety, disempower me, and alienate me from my peers. The disturbing incidents triggered a chronic physical condition from which I still suffer. It is with a beating, heavy heart that I say I coped in isolation and, at times, destructively.”

“Buffy” actress Amber Benson supported Carpenter’s claims, “Buffy was a toxic environment and it starts at the top. @AllCharismais speaking truth and I support her 100%. There was a lot of damage done during that time and many of us are still processing it twenty plus years later. #IStandWithRayFisher #IstandWithCharismaCarpenter,” she wrote.

Marie Finn