List of Buffy the Vampire Slayer characters

This article lists the major and recurring fictional characters created by Joss Whedon for the television series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. For detailed descriptions, see individual character pages.

Main characters
The following characters were featured in the opening credits of the program.
 * Note
 * Seth Green is in the main cast of the first six episodes of Season Four, departing in "Wild at Heart" before making two guest appearances later in the season.
 * Faith does not appear in the first two episodes of season four, but is immediately upgraded to a regular in episode 3, "Faith, Hope and Trick" on her debut episode.
 * James Marsters makes two guest appearances in the fourth season before joining the main cast in episode 7, "The Initiative".
 * Marc Blucas appears in eight episodes before joining the main cast in "Doomed", episode 11 of the fourth season. He departs in "Into the Woods", episode 10 of the fifth season, and appears as a guest in "As You Were", season 6 episode 14.
 * Seth Green makes a guest appearance in episode 1, "Buffy vs. Dracula" of Season Seven before immediately being upgraded to a regular in episode 2, "Real Me".
 * 1) Amber Benson is recurring until "Seeing Red", episode 19 of season 6, the only episode for which she is credited in the main cast.
 * Marc Blucas appears in eight episodes before joining the main cast in "Doomed", episode 11 of the fourth season. He departs in "Into the Woods", episode 10 of the fifth season, and appears as a guest in "As You Were", season 6 episode 14.
 * Seth Green makes a guest appearance in episode 1, "Buffy vs. Dracula" of Season Seven before immediately being upgraded to a regular in episode 2, "Real Me".
 * 1) Amber Benson is recurring until "Seeing Red", episode 19 of season 6, the only episode for which she is credited in the main cast.
 * Seth Green makes a guest appearance in episode 1, "Buffy vs. Dracula" of Season Seven before immediately being upgraded to a regular in episode 2, "Real Me".
 * 1) Amber Benson is recurring until "Seeing Red", episode 19 of season 6, the only episode for which she is credited in the main cast.
 * 1) Amber Benson is recurring until "Seeing Red", episode 19 of season 6, the only episode for which she is credited in the main cast.

The show's titular protagonist, Buffy is "The Slayer", one in a long line of young girls chosen by fate to battle evil forces in the form of vampires and demons. The Slayer has no jurisdiction over human crime. This calling mystically endows her with a limited degree of clairvoyance, usually in the form of prophetic dreams, as well as dramatically increased physical strength, endurance, agility, intuition, and speed and ease of healing. There traditionally has been only one Slayer alive at any given moment, with a new one called upon the event of her death.
 * Buffy Anne Summers


 * Faith Lehane  (4.03–4.25, recurring afterward): Faith, a Slayer, is called when Kendra is killed by the vampire Drusilla. When she arrives in Sunnydale, she fights alongside Buffy and the Scooby Gang. After accidentally committing murder, she indulges her violent tendencies and joins forces with the Mayor. Buffy stabs Faith, who falls into a coma; eight months later she wakes up and swaps bodies with Buffy. After being defeated, she flees to Los Angeles and accepts a contract to kill Angel. Angel is able to rehabilitate her, and she confesses to her crimes and goes to prison. Three years later, she breaks out to capture Angelus when Wesley Wyndam-Pryce informs her that he has been released. After Angel is re-ensouled, Faith reluctantly returns to Sunnydale to stand with Buffy against the First Evil. She temporarily leads both the Scoobies and the Potentials when the general faith in Buffy dissolves. Throughout the series, Faith displays a much darker, dangerously fun-seeking approach to both slaying and murder; she is the dark side of a Slayer's personality.

Faith Mini Series Characters

 * Faith Lehane - Keeper of the diary.
 * Professor Diana Dormer – A professor of folklore and mythology at Harvard University, and Faith's first Watcher.
 * Alexandra – Faith has been seeing visions of an apparently imaginary young girl she knows from childhood as 'Alex'.
 * Clark Rutherfold (Gable) – Boyfriend of Faith's mother who is heavily involved in crime.
 * Faith's mother – A woman who has largely been absent from Faith's life.
 * Faith's father – Faith has been told by her mother that her father died when she was young.
 * Jess – Friend of Faith during her time with the Joneses and slightly beyond.
 * The Jones Family – A Christian family who take Faith under foster care. They had a son, Robert, whom they tell Faith is now dead.
 * Kakistos – An ancient vampire so old that his hands are actually cloven hooves. In ancient Greece, he commanded the Maenads, and battled the Slayer Artemia.
 * Kenny (Killian) – Drummer of a band called "Freak Wharf." He has the ability to make parts of his imagination come to life. Kenny dates Faith for several months.
 * Andra – Girlfriend of Kenny. She was killed by Mister Trick in a cemetery. Using the powers of his mind, Kenny was effectively able to bring her image back as an unusually powerful hallucination.
 * Sensei Kanno – A martial artist who trained Potential Slayers and Slayers, including Faith. He was driven by the need to take revenge against vampires who had killed his family.
 * Steve – Faith's boyfriend during early 1998.
 * Tommy – Faith's best friend during high school. Like Faith, he is a fan of Freak Wharf.
 * Vanity Collins (V) – A social worker who regularly met Faith.

Notable villains
The following characters are commonly referred to within the show as Big Bads, usually the principal antagonist for a season, though some seasons have multiple Big Bads.

The sixth season documentaries often refer to not only Dark Willow as the season's Big Bad, but life itself.
 * Season 1: Lord Zar
 * Season 2:Spike, Drusilla, Darla, Sophie-Anne
 * Season 3: Derek,Angelus
 * Season 4:Mayor Wilkins, Mr. Trick, Faith
 * Season 5: Sunday, Adam
 * Season 6: Callisto
 * Season 7: Glory
 * Season 8: The Trio (Warren Mears, Jonathan Levinson, Andrew Wells), Dark Willow
 * Season 9:The First Evil, Caleb