Buffy Director Says David Boreanaz Was ‘Terrified’ Shooting the First Episode of the Series

David Boreanaz seemed “terrified” on the set of the very first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, according to director Charles Martin Smith.

Smith joined Buffy alumna Juliet Landau on the most recent episode of her Re-Vamped podcast to discuss his experience directing the beloved series’ 1997 premiere — the only Buffy episode he ever helmed.

Smith said that one of the challenges of working on the premiere was the fact that, besides star Sarah Michelle Gellar, many of the actors “really had very little experience” in front of the camera. He recalled Boreanaz, who had only appeared in a handful of small film roles and in a single 1993 episode of Married… with Children before landing the role of reluctant vampire Angel, seeming particularly nervous.

“I remember him coming to set, and I just thought, ‘This kid is terrified,’ ” Smith said. “I do remember David being — just not really knowing what to do.”

Boreanaz, of course, found his stride on the show, becoming a breakout star. His character was ultimately given a spin-off series, Angel, which aired for five seasons on The WB from 1999 to 2004.

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Years later, Smith said, he ran into Boreanaz at a party in Hollywood. “He thanked me for getting him through that first day,” Smith said. “He was really sweet about it. He said, ‘I really did not know what I was doing. But thanks, Charlie.’ And I said, ‘Well, you know, you wanna help a young actor.’ I was a young actor myself who didn’t know what I was doing. So, you know, you wanna help those people.”

Despite his shaky start on the series, Boreanaz suggested last year that he might be interested in revisiting the worlds of Buffy and Angel.

“It’s definitely something that would be interesting to tap back into, that world, that environment,” he told PEOPLE.

While Hulu has confirmed a Chloé Zhao-directed Buffy reboot is in the works with Gellar reprising her title role, there’s been no word so far about whether Boreanaz will return as Angel.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is available to stream in full on Hulu and for free on Tubi.