Melanie Lynskey rejected a role in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'.

The 46-year-old actress was invited to audition for the role of Buffy's best friend Willow, but Melanie ultimately decided to reject the opportunity.

Melanie - who was born and raised in New Zealand - told Shut Up Evan: The Newsletter: "It was kind of a visa issue, but not really; I also was not sure about doing television at that time.

"It was very early in my career. I had a very old-school agent who was like, 'TV? That’s for has-beens!' and I was like, 'I don't think it is anymore.' Certainly now things have really changed, but I just wasn't super into it at the time."

Melanie discussed joining the show with Joss Whedon, the writer and director. But the role was ultimately handed to Alyson Hannigan and Melanie believes that she did an "absolutely wonderful" job.

The actress explained: "I had a dinner with Joss and I don't remember if it was an offer or if it was like, 'Would you come read for it?' or what it was, but we stayed in touch after that. And then I guess they were replacing the person from the pilot at a certain point and I had stayed in touch with [Joss], and he said, 'Now do you think you would want to do it?' And I had seen the pilot and I was like, 'Oh, this is good,' and I kind of took my agent into it. And then, it became this whole thing of, 'Well, now you have to audition'.

"So I auditioned. Then: 'Oh, they didn't like what you were wearing.' It was a whole process. And then I didn't get it!

"Alyson Hannigan got it, who was absolutely wonderful and all was [cast] as it should have been. That was the actual story."