Sarah Michelle Gellar was born on April 14, 1977 to Steve and Rosellen Gellar in New York City. Her self-described childhood was a poor one, and her father and mother divorced while she was still very young, leaving Sarah to be raised by her mother. At the age of 4 she was discovered eating in a local restaurant by a talent agent and soon began appearing in numerous commercials, most notably one for Burger King in 1982. The commercial was a landmark one, in that it was the first commercial to ever mention a competitor by name. The competitor, McDonalds, did not take kindly to having their burgers called smaller than other companies, and they proceeded to sue Burger King and little Sarah. Though the case was later dismissed by a judge, Sarah was not able to enter a McDonalds, unless in disguise, due to truth in advertising, since one of her lines was "I only eat at Burger King."

Sarah attended the Professional Children's School in Manhattan and La Guardia High School, also in New York, and received excellent grades while still working. She had various guest spots on TV shows, as well as parts in movies such as "Funny Farm" and "Over the Brooklyn Bridge". In 1989, Sarah became one of the hosts on the talk show "Girl Talk" and she later starred in the critically acclaimed TV movie "A Woman Named Jackie" as a teenage Jaqueline Bouvier. Her role on the short-lived teen soap opera, "Swans Crossing" garnered her some fame, but not nearly as much as her role as Erica Kane's daughter, Kendall Hart, on the soap "All My Children". Sarah began working on the show at the start of 1993 and was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 1994. She lost, but was nominated again in 1995 and won that year for Best Younger Leading Actress. The day after she received her award, Sarah publicly announced that she would be leaving the show, though the plan for her departure had been in the works for months.

In 1996, Sarah auditioned for the role of Cordelia on the new series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", but producers thought she would be better for the lead role of Buffy, which she eventually won. The pilot was filmed in 1996, but didn't actually air until January of 1997. Though show was only ranked as 100 out of 107 shows, it had the highest ever ratings for a WB show, which was then just a fledgling network. The show has since become a huge cult hit, and even has it's own spin-off, "Angel", which Sarah guested on during the first season. Though never nominated for an Emmy for her role as Buffy, Sarah has gained great critical acclaim and fame with her role.

The role also helped propel her film career, as she won roles in horror films like "Scream 2" and "I Know What You Did Last Summer", for which she won a Blockbuster Entertainment Award in 1998 as Best Supporting Actress- Horror. In 1999, Sarah starred in "Simply Irresistible", a small romantic comedy that didn't manage to gain much fame, and the more popular "Cruel Intentions", based on the French book "Les Liaisons Dangereuses". In June 2000, Sarah won two MTV Movie Awards for her role as Kathryn in the film: Best Kiss with Selma Blair and Best Female Performance. Soon after, she was nominated for Golden Globe Award for her work on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

Sarah has continued moving on a positive path in both her career and her life. In August 2002, she married her longtime boyfriend, actor Freddie Prinze, Jr. Earlier in the year, the two had co-starred together in the live action movie version of "Scooby-Doo," a box office hit which has already spawned an upcoming sequel (which will again feature Sarah and Freddie). In September 2002, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" began it's seventh and final season on TV. Sarah announced in March 2003 that she would be leaving the show at the end of the season, prompting what many had suspected for months to come - the show would be ending. Now that the show is over, Sarah continues to pursue a career in movies and a life and family with her husband Freddie.