Well, I doubt it could have been, considering that James was 35 years old at the time, it doesn't look much like him, 'cept the hair.
Maybe Joss was getting in some practise.
Maybe it was Stephen Meyer getting a feel for the vampire stuff, he did do such a good job in the film Priest and the TV series True Blood (Bill).
I did wonder at the time if he been involved with vampire related shows.