James Marsters calls 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' assault scene the "darkest professional day of his career"

Washington [US], September 5 : Actor James Marsters, who is best known for his role as Spike on 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer', recently opened up about a difficult moment in his career, calling it "the darkest professional day of my life," according to The Hollywood Reporter.
In a candid interview on the Inside of You podcast with Michael Rosenbaum, Marsters spoke about the trauma he felt while shooting a controversial scene in the show.
The scene in question comes from the season six episode 'Seeing Red,' which aired in May 2002. In the episode, Spike tries to assault Buffy, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar, after she rejects him. Buffy manages to fight him off, but the scene left a lasting impact on Marsters.
"It's a problematic scene for a lot of people who like the show. It's the darkest professional day of my life," Marsters said.
Marsters also added that the Bluffy writers were asked to come up with stories based on their worst personal experiences. The specific scene with Spike and Buffy was inspired by one of the female writers' real-life experiences from college.
"She had gotten broken up with, and she went to her ex's place and thought that if they made love one more time, everything would be fixed...And she kind of forced herself, and he had to physically remove her from the premises," he said.
The Runaways actor further said that the writers thought they could the situation because Buffy was a superhero and could easily defend herself.
"I said, 'You know, guys, we're providing a vicarious experience for the audience,'" he said.
"Everyone who's watching Buffy is Buffy, and they're not superheroes. So, I'm doing this to every member of the audience, and they're gonna have a very different reaction," the actor added.
Marsters also admitted that he struggles with scenes involving sexual violence, whether he's acting in them or watching them.