A new chosen one: Ryan Kiera Armstrong is the next vampire slayer in Buffy reboot

She got her start as little Minnie May Barry on Netflix's Anne With An E, made a name for herself in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, but soon you'll know her as the next vampire slayer.

Actor Ryan Kiera Armstrong has just been cast in the lead role alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar in the pilot for Hulu's reboot of the wildly popular late '90s television series Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

Gellar, the original show's Buffy, made the announcement on Instagram Thursday, in which she also revealed the news to 15-year-old Armstrong.

"Good," Armstrong replied tearfully.

Then, in a reference to the opening narration of the original series, that, "In every generation, there is a chosen one," Gellar asked, "Do you want to be my chosen one?"

Buffy the Vampire Slayer premiered in 1997 and ran through 2003. Its title character battled vampires, demons and other dark forces in the fictional California city of Sunnydale while navigating everyday teenage struggles.

Multiple media reported in February that a reboot was in the works, and that streaming service Hulu had ordered the pilot. On Thursday, Hulu shared Gellar's reel on its own Instagram page, as well as in its stories, where it added, "Welcome to New Sunnydale, Ryan."

The original broke the mould for traditional television series.

As CBC Ideas reported on the show's 20th anniversary in 2017, many cultural critics believe Buffy the Vampire Slayer had a major influence on a generation of television production with its long, sweeping narrative arcs and deep character development set against a background of contemporary social anxieties and tensions.

Gellar is an executive producer of the so-far-untitled Buffyverse project, Deadline reports, and will also reprise her role as Buffy Summers. Oscar-winner Chloé Zhao (Nomadland), is directing the pilot, which is written by Nora and Lilla Zuckerman.

Armstrong will play this generation's slayer. The U.S. actor started her career on the Anne of Green Gables-based Anne with an E, where she played Diana Barry's younger sister. She's known for her roles in Firestarter, American Horror Story, The Lowdown, and Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.

On Instagram, Gellar wrote that she was impressed with Armstrong from the beginning.

"From the moment I saw Ryan's audition, I knew there was only one girl that I wanted by my side. To have that kind of emotional intelligence, and talent, at such a young age is truly a gift. The bonus is that her smile lights up even the darkest room," Gellar wrote.

Writers Nora and Lilla Zuckerman added that they were "overjoyed" with the choice of Armstrong in the role.

"She absolutely blew us away — there is no question in our mind that she is the chosen one," they said in the Instagram video.

In her own Instagram post, Armstrong wrote Thursday that she was "beyond thankful and excited."

"I'm still in so much shock and disbelief," she added.