So, where to begin? My origin story isn't exactly a comic book epic. There were no radioactive spiders, no alien parents, just... a lot of average kid stuff, mixed with an unhealthy amount of television and an even unhealthier dose of self-doubt due to a stutter.
Before I was the guy who didn't have any powers, I was the guy who wanted to throw a 95-mph fastball. That was the dream, Nicky Brendon, starting pitcher for the Dodgers. I had the arm, I had the heart, and I had the ability to look great in those tight white pants. But then my arm decided to retire before I did.
I got into acting not for some some deep, artistic epiphany about the human condition, the truth was my stutter made every sentence feel like I was trying to navigate a minefield while wearing roller skates. It was bad. I’d get stuck on a B or an S and just… stay there. Forever.
I discovered that if I used someone else’s words in a script, the stutter vanished. Acting wasn't about fame, it was the only way I could say a complete sentence without sounding like a skipping CD.
So, I traded the pitcher’s mound for the soundstage. I traded a baseball for a wooden stake. It’s basically the same motion, just with more splinters.
Then came the late 90s. The glorious era of grunge, dial-up internet, and an undeniable craving for supernatural teen drama. And suddenly, there I was, a guy somehow auditioning for a show about a girl who slays vampires while navigating high school. The role? Xander Harris. The lovable, wisecracking, perpetually unlucky-in-love best friend. It was like they’d read my diary and then added 'fights demons' to make it more exciting.
And thus, my destiny was sealed. For seven glorious, monster-filled years, I got to be Xander Harris which was the greatest gig in the world, even if I did have to wear those Hawaiian shirts.
Playing Xander was a trip. The guy who, despite being surrounded by vampires, witches, and werewolves, still worried about his love life, his job, and whether his friends actually liked him or just tolerated him so I resonated with Xander as we both had a talent for self-sabotage, and an unwavering loyalty to our friends, even when they were trying to turn us into a rat.
The show blew up, and suddenly, I went to people wanting me to sign their foreheads even if i was the only one in the Scooby Gang who could die from a papercut while everyone else was busy being immortal but I survived seven years of apocalypses, two different weddings (one involving a demon), and I only lost one eye. In the grand scheme of the Hellmouth, that’s a pretty solid win-loss record.
After Buffy ended, I quickly learned that the world really, really liked the idea of me as the quirky, sarcastic best friend even if i wanted to move on making a joke about someone’s terrible fashion sense after they’ve just been dismembered.
I've had some fantastic roles since Buffy, and some that were... let's just say they paid the rent but i really enjoyed the convention circuit! Where else can you meet someone dressed as Spike, lamenting the price of a signed photo, while I'm sharing a table with someone who once played a disgruntled Alien on a forgotten sci-fi show from 1986?
I loved seeing my old castmates there. It’s like a mini-reunion every time. We swap stories, mostly about how old we’re getting, how much coffee we need, and whether anyone remembers that one incredibly obscure episode where a demon made it we had to sing every line. It’s a reminder of the incredible thing we all created together, and it brings a smile to my face every time. Not just because of the nostalgia, but also because I usually get free snacks.
After Buffy things got dark but I’ve never claimed to be a saint. I’ve struggled with the darkness more than most slayers. I’ve had my ups and downs with depression and alcoholism. I’ve been the guy on the poster and the guy on the mugshot. But through all the rehabs, the mistakes, the arrests and the public apologies, you guys stayed even after that one night in LA when things got a little, shall we say, electric.
Getting tasered while you’re drunk is an experience I would give a zero-star rating on Yelp. 0/10. Do not recommend.
My most important fall was an actual fall for which i underwent spinal surgery after I suffered paralysis from the waist down and the spinal surgery to fix that caused a spinal cord puncture and a heart attack and a dignosis of a heart defect which caught up with me.
It turns out that kicking the bucket from natural causes is a lot less dramatic than being eaten by a Preacher-turned-God or losing an eye to a rogue preacher.
There was no dust, no fancy light shows, no Glory, the Mayor or the First Evil it felt like a bit of a plot hole for a guy who spent his twenties fighting the undead which in all honestly, felt like a bit of a letdown.
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