Gossip Girl (2021)

Gossip Girl
Genre	Teen drama
Based on	Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar
Developed by	Josh Schwartz Stephanie Savage
Starring	Emily Alyn Lind Whitney Peak Eli Brown Johnathan Fernandez Jason Gotay Tavi Gevinson Thomas Doherty Adam Chanler-Berat Zion Moreno Savannah Smith Jordan Alexander Evan Mock
Country of origin	United States
Number of seasons	1 • 2
Number of episodes	14
Production
Running time	56–60 minutes
Executive producer	Josh Schwartz Stephanie Savage Joshua Safran Leslie Morgenstein Gina Girolamo
Release
Original network	HBO Max
Release date	July 8, 2021 - January 26, 2023
Chronology
Preceded by	Gossip Girl (2007-2012)

Gossip Girl is the revival of the original series, confirmed to be an "extension" of its predecessor. It was officially announced on July 18, 2019 in a straight-to-series order as part of HBO Max's lineup of original shows. Showrunner Joshua Safran would return as well as creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage as executive producers.

On May 23, 2020, it was announced that the series was delayed until 2021 due to a global production shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Production for the series began on November 2, 2020. The series finally aired on HBO Max starting from July 8, 2021. The reboot series was renewed for a second season on September 9, 2021.[1] Production on the second season began on January 12th, 2022, and concluded on August 13, 2022. The second season premiered on December 1, 2022.

On January 19, 2023, HBO Max announced the cancellation of Gossip Girl owing to low viewership and reviews suggesting that the relaunch hasn't captured the same kind of spark that made the 2007-2012 series successful.

About

WarnerMedia, on behalf of HBO's soon-to-be-launched streaming service HBO Max, has ordered 10 hour-long episodes of the new version of the show. The show will tackle contemporary issues, including social media and online privacy.

The show will still be based upon the books by Cecily von Ziegesar, though she isn't involved in the revival.

The show's summary on HBO Max: "Nearly a decade after the original Gossip Girl’s website went dark, a new generation of New York City private school teens are introduced to the unflattering reality of 24/7 social surveillance."

"It's just a new look at this particular society in New York, the idea being that society changes constantly," screenwriter Joshua Safran told The Hollywood Reporter. "So how has this world changed, how has social media and its effect changed? All of those things allow us to look at the world 10 years on as opposed to just redoing the story."

Plot

Nearly a decade after the original site went dark, a new generation of New York private school teens is introduced to the watchful eye of Gossip Girl, however this time GG is using social media and is going global. The prestige series will address just how much social media — and the landscape of New York itself — has changed in the intervening years.

Cast

Main

• Kristen Bell as the voice of Gossip Girl: An anonymous Instagram account that spies on the students. And this just in - there's a big secret amongst the ruling class of Constance Billard. And who are they now? That's one secret they'll never tell.
• Emily Alyn Lind as Audrey Hope: Insta: @audreyhopesfor. The perfect friend. A loving daughter. Whose always looking for more. How far is Constance Billard's overachiever willing to go? And will it ever be enough? XOXO
• Jordan Alexander as Julien Calloway: Insta: @juliencalloway. Influencer. Model. Constance Billard's finest. Enjoy your view from the top now, J. The higher you are, the harder you'll fall. XOXO.
• Tavi Gevinson as Kate Keller: Whip smart. Soft heart. Sharp tongue. You've always used your smarts for good. Will the Upper East side change your tune? XOXO.
• Thomas Doherty as Max Wolfe: Insta: @maxtheewolfe. Debonair. Man about town. Habitual pleasure seeker. They say wolves hunt in packs. Could that be why you're so afraid to be alone? XOXO.
• Savannah Smith as Monet de Haan: Insta: @monetdehaan. Perfection. Power. Prestige. Having fun wielding power as CB's ruling class? It's all a game until you're picking up the pieces of a fallen kingdom. XOXO.
• Evan Mock as Akeno "Aki" Menzies: Insta: @akimenz. Lover boy. The charming beau. Heartbreaker. Does your vanilla life need some spice? Be careful. Not all flavors taste sweet. XOXO.
• Zion Moreno as Luna La: Insta: @lunalaaaaaa. An eye for fashion. An ear for secrets. And a knack for scheming. The Queen of Mean wears her crown well, but will she go out of style? XOXO.
• Whitney Peak as Zoya Lott: Insta: @alottazee. The new girl. Making a fresh start. In the big city. Careful, Z. You only get one first impression. And it better be good. XOXO
• Eli Brown as Otto "Obie" Bergmann IV: Insta: @ottobergmanniv. The "good" guy. The boyfriend. The charmer. Dear sweet O, who knew someone with such a big heart could be such a big heartbreaker? XOXO.

Recurring

• Adam Chanler-Berat as Jordan Glassberg
• Johnathan Fernandez as Nick Lott
• Jason Gotay as Rafa Caparros
• Laura Benanti as Kiki Hope
• Donna Murphy as Headmistress Burton
• Elizabeth Lail as Lola Morgan
• Lyne Renée as Helena Bergmann
• Lucy Punch as Saskia Bates
• Luke Kirby as Davis Calloway
• John Benjamin Hickey as Roy Sachs
• Megan Ferguson as Wendy
• Todd Almond as Gideon Wolfe

Gossip Girl

• Timeline of Gossip Girl

Episodes

• Episode Guide

External links

• Gossip Girl on HBO Max Wiki
• Gossip Girl on Wikipedia
• Gossip Girl on Instagram

Trivia

• The series is not be a reboot of the original, in that new actors are portraying new versions of existing characters. This was confirmed by Joshua Safran, discrediting many major media outlets. "It's just a new look at this particular society in New York, the idea being that society changes constantly," Safran said. "So how has this world changed, how has social media and its effect changed? All of those things allow us to look at the world 12 years on as opposed to just redoing the story. None of us are interested in just redoing a story."
• Gossip Girl is slated to feature more adult content than the original on The CW, owing to the relaxed standards of the HBO Max streaming service. The series is also slated to be more diverse, with non-white leads and LGBT characters.
• Kristen Bell, who served as the iconic narrator reprises her role as the voice of Gossip Girl.
• Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage previously approached Safrin about reviving the show, but he wasn't interested. He then had an idea of the show reflecting the New York teen demographics and approached the duo. The three pitched the idea to Warner Bros. and received a series commitment.
• Safrin revealed that the leads of the show would be non-white, and would attend Constance Billard School for Girls, walking the same steps as Serena van der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf. He stated that there’s a lot of queer content on the show.
• The original cast has not been asked to take part in the new series, according to Leighton Meester and Chace Crawford, refuting an earlier message made by Schwartz that he had informed the original cast of the revival prior to its announcement and invited them to appear. Meester has said she will not appear whereas Crawford was open to reprise his role.
• Safran confirmed that there will be mentions of Serena, Nate, Dan and the other characters from the original .
• Emily Alyn Lind was announced as the female lead on March 2, 2020. Her character was the first to be teased, about a girl named Audrey who has been in a long term relationship and is beginning to wonder what more could be out there.. The next wave of cast members announced hours later. Tavi Gevinson was announced as a lead, along with Thomas Doherty, Adam Chanler-Berat, and Zion Moreno on March 11, 2020. Newcomer Savannah Smith was the last of the lead cast to be announced, on April 1st, 2020.
• Filming was initially planned to begin in mid-March 2020, but was presumably postponed in part of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Filming formerly started the week of November 2nd-6th, as revealed during an outside scene being shot with Peak's and Brown's characters.
• Eli Brown admitted the cast has been sworn the secrecy regarding their characters and their plots. What he was able to say about his character is that he's "a good guy from a very wealthy family, and he's a humanitarian."
• As of January 2, 2021, not much is known about an air date or about the characters except for one word descriptions.
• On May 21, 2021, a sneak peek was released for the series.
• Unlike the orginal, the revival was not explicitly indulged in the glorification of the characters' wealth and privilege, in accordance with changing views and concerns in today's modern world regarding the showcasing of having money and the power that can be done with it.
• The pilot episode had its cable television premiere on The CW on July 9th, 2021, a day after the show debuted on HBO Max. However, it was a one time deal as there were no deals to air any new episodes on the network since the series streams on HBO max.
• There are sixteen series regulars and up to twenty-two recurring characters. The original series had seven series regulars and twelve recurring characters.
• The creator of the series revealed that he wants to be more inclusive with the sequel, and wants to showcase a more diverse universe, and tell more queer stories.
• Viewers are able to find the sequel on BBC One in the United Kingdom, and on Crave in Canada.

Videos

Gossip Girl - Official Teaser - HBO Max-2

Gossip Girl - Official Trailer - HBO Max-2