10 TV Shows Probably Made Out Of Spite

10. Buffy The Vampire Slayer

The Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series may have premiered in 1997, but the IP had its origins much earlier, when Joss Whedon sold a feature film script based on the concept in 1991.

Though Whedon was involved in the film's production as an advisor, he left after growing frustrated with changes to his vision.

Fox executives removed many of his jokes, he bristled with director Fran Rubel Kuzui, who was re-shaping the film into a broader comedy project, and Whedon also fought with actor Donald Sutherland, who deviated from Whedon's script with heavy improv.

Despite being poorly reviewed, Buffy was a modest commercial success, albeit not enough for Fox to press on with any further films.

But a few years later, Whedon was approached to adapt his vision into a TV series, which he successfully packaged and sold to the WB Network.

With his original tone kept in tact and original star Kristy Swanson swapped out for Sarah Michelle Gellar, Whedon was finally able to bring his distinct vision of supernatural high-school drama to the masses.

Whatever you make of Whedon today, he absolutely got the last laugh on those Fox executives who so thoroughly compromised his vision back in the early '90s.