Joss Whedon passed on writing the script for the new Buffy feature, according to The ollywood Reporter story citing unnamed “studio insiders.”  Whedon was offered the writing gig last year, according to the report, but turned it down to work on other projects, including Marvel’s Avengers feature.

Whedon, who wrote the original 1992 film, had some fun with the planned reboot when it was announced last week (see “Warner Bros. Rebooting Buffy”).

The studio leak about the Whedon offer was undoubtedly done to deflect criticism of the reboot from Whedon's loyal army of fans.