Joss Whedon has vetoed the US DVD release of Buffy in widescreen format - because it's not the way the show was intended to be seen.

In a statement to the Digital Bits web site, Whedon explained his reasons why the Season Four DVD box set would be in regular 4:3 ratio:

"[The episodes] were not shot in a widescreen format... I want to see the whole screen, as framed by the director. The Buffy's I (and others) shot were framed for traditional TVs.

"Adding space to the sides simply for the sake of trying to look more cinematic would betray the very exact mise-en-scene I was trying to create. I am a purist, and this is the purest way to watch Buffy. I have resisted the effort to letterbox Buffy from the start and always will, because that is not the show we shot.

BBC2 and UK DVD Buffy viewers have been enjoying widescreen versions of episodes since the start of series four. This is because Fox supply international broadcasters with master tapes sourced from the original 70mm film stock the series is shot on.