Gossip Girl | |
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Genre | Teen drama |
Based on | Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar |
Developed by | Joshua Safran |
Starring |
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Narrated by | Kristen Bell |
Music by | Ariel Rechtshaid |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 22 |
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Running time | 56–60 minutes |
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Release | |
Original network | HBO Max |
Original release | July 8, 2021 – January 26, 2023 |
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Preceded by | Gossip Girl (2007–2012) |
Gossip Girl is an American teen drama streaming television series developed by Joshua Safran for HBO Max. It is an extension and a standalone sequel to The CW television series of the same name, which is based on the novel series written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series is executive produced by original series co-creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, along with Safran, who was an executive producer on the first series and who also serves as showrunner. The series is narrated by Kristen Bell, who reprised her role as the voice of Gossip Girl, an anonymous and omniscient blogger. The series features an ensemble cast led by Jordan Alexander, Whitney Peak, Tavi Gevinson, Eli Brown, Thomas Doherty, Emily Alyn Lind, Evan Mock, Zión Moreno, Savannah Lee Smith, and Grace Duah.
It was given a straight-to-series order in July 2019 by HBO Max. Filming takes place in New York City and was originally scheduled to begin in March 2020 before being delayed until November 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gossip Girl premiered on HBO Max on July 8, 2021, to mixed reviews and broke the record for the most-watched HBO Max original series over its launch weekend. [1] The first season consisted of 12 episodes, split into two six-episode parts, with the second half debuting on November 25, 2021. In September 2021, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on December 1, 2022. In January 2023, the series was cancelled after two seasons. [2]
Nearly a decade after the conclusion of the original series, a new cast of Manhattan private schoolers takes the lead under the watchful eye of Gossip Girl, while demonstrating how much social media – and the landscape of New York City itself – has changed in the intervening years. 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. [3]
In regard to continuity, executive producer and showrunner Joshua Safran stated that it is officially in the same continuity of the original Gossip Girl series. However, rather than a direct continuation of the story, it is instead set in the same world where previous characters existed and can be freely referenced and potentially reappear, but stars a different set of characters from a different point of view.
The series is narrated by Kristen Bell as the voice of "Gossip Girl", an online anonymous figure, reprising her role from the 2007 series.
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |||
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1 | 1 | "Just Another Girl on the MTA" | Karena Evans | Teleplay by : Joshua Safran | July 8, 2021 | |||
As the students return to school after the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of worn-out teachers create an Instagram account as the omniscient and anonymous "Gossip Girl" to take back power from their teenaged tormentors. Determined to start a feud that rivals that of former students Blair and Serena, the teachers set their sights on Julien Calloway, an influencer and student who has secretly paid off the staff to have her younger half-sister, Zoya, admitted. Julien and Zoya are finally united, but keep their long history of social media messaging a secret from their fathers and Julien's friends. After Julien invites Zoya into her group of friends, "Gossip Girl" exposes their secret friendship and how Julien paid for Zoya to receive a scholarship before catching a picture of Zoya and Julien's boyfriend, Obie, and claiming the two to be secret lovers. Julien develops a plan to clear Zoya's name at her fashion show, but Monet and Luna secretly concoct a scheme that gets Zoya kicked out. After Julien does not help Zoya, the two denounce their friendship as Zoya announces her plan to overthrow Julien and becomes close with Obie after he dumps Julien. Meanwhile, Audrey and Aki both develop attractions to Max. | ||||||||
2 | 2 | "She's Having a Maybe" | Karena Evans | April Blair | July 15, 2021 | |||
As the teachers prepare for parent–teacher conferences, Audrey is disappointed after her mother, Kiki, fails to show up. Audrey convinces Kiki to attend the school's black-tie fundraiser, but is enraged when Kiki becomes drunk and acts inappropriately. Meanwhile, Obie attempts to form a relationship with Zoya. After "Gossip Girl" posts a picture of the two together, Julien photoshops a picture of herself and Obie together, causing "Gossip Girl" to be denounced as a liar. When it appears Zoya will have to leave the school, Julien steps in to apologize to Zoya and convince their fathers to let Zoya stay. Elsewhere, Max sets his sights on Rafa despite the fact he is a teacher. He makes multiple advances, including making out with Aki at a bathhouse to make Rafa jealous, before Rafa agrees that they can hook up after Max graduates. Audrey then sleeps with Max after she is angered by Aki. | ||||||||
3 | 3 | "Lies Wide Shut" | Jennifer Lynch | Lila Feinberg | July 22, 2021 | |||
After Julien and Max spend a night out partying, they discover Max's father is cheating and Julien's father has a secret girlfriend, Lola. Obie meets Nick who finally agrees to let Zoya and Obie go on a date, but after Zoya deals with Internet backlash, she turns to Luna for a makeover of sorts. "Gossip Girl" posts about students cheating in relationships, and both Audrey and Aki are convinced the post is about their own affairs with Max. Max asks Aki to create a fake dating profile under the guise of Rafa to catch his father in the act, and Max and Julien secretly invite Rafa and Lola to the opening night of a Broadway play. Max exposes Roy's cheating to Gideon and, heartbroken and high, reveals Aki and Audrey's infidelities to the two before staying the night on Rafa's couch. Julien and Davis agree that he no longer needs to hide Lola. Meanwhile, the school hires an intelligence team to crack down on "Gossip Girl". Feeling desperate, Kate and Jordan trick Reema into posting while their firewall is down, allowing Reema to get caught and take the blame for the account. | ||||||||
4 | 4 | "Fire Walks with Z" | Jennifer Lynch | Courtney Perdue & Baindu Saidu | July 29, 2021 | |||
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5 | 5 | "Hope Sinks" | Pamela Romanowsky | Aaron Fullerton | August 5, 2021 | |||
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6 | 6 | "Parentsite" | Pamela Romanowsky | Ashley Wigfield | August 12, 2021 | |||
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7 | 7 | "Once Upon a Time in the Upper West" | Joshua Safran | Elaine Loh | November 25, 2021 | |||
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8 | 8 | "Posts on a Scandal" | Kenny Leon | Eric Eidelstein | November 25, 2021 | |||
Max is dejected when Audrey and Aki tell him they want to be exclusive again and struggles to enjoy sex afterwards, so Luna encourages him to try and emotionally connect with people. Obie is forced to apologize for inciting the riot at his mother's company. Julien mends her friendship with Monet but things with Zoya remain strained. Aki rebuffs Obie's attempts to repair their friendship, telling him he is too self-centered. Jordan and Wendy convince Kate to post that Davis is a rapist on "Gossip Girl", which brings Julien's world crashing down. Davis denies the allegations but says that the accusation will destroy his and Julien's lives regardless. Nick and Zoya clash over the news when he encourages her to try and support her sister. Aki finds out that his dad knew about the allegations and reveals that the woman's story could not be verified, leading Julien to believe that her dad is innocent though Kate, as "Gossip Girl", reluctantly continues to post based on information from Zoya. Obie stands up for himself at dinner with his mother and reconciles with Aki. The other teachers oust Kate from "Gossip Girl" because they believe she has lost objectivity. Julien finds evidence that Davis has slept with multiple women who were too drunk to consent and confronts him, though he continues to deny any wrongdoing. | ||||||||
9 | 9 | "Blackberry Narcissus" | Satya Bhabha | Amos Mac | November 25, 2021 | |||
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10 | 10 | "Final Cancellation" | Craig Johnson | Ryan Koehn | December 2, 2021 | |||
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11 | 11 | "You Can't Take It with Jules" | Erica Watson | JaNeika James & JaSheika James | December 2, 2021 | |||
As Christmas approaches, Davis signs the majority of his assets to Julien and makes her grandparents legal guardians. Julien's grandmother subsequently arrives and announces that Julien must leave the city to live with her. Zoya befriends Shan, who encourages her to be more rebellious, causing Julien's plan to use Nick to convince her grandmother to let her stay in New York backfire when Zoya is caught in a lie. Aki and Audrey begin their search for a third to join their relationship but struggle to find anyone who compares to Max. Obie's sister, who took Max's virginity, arrives in town and announces that she is engaged which leads a jealous Max to team up with Obie to expose her relationship as a lie. Spurred by Shan, Zoya reconciles with Nick and they convince Julien's grandmother to let her move in with them. Kate, Jordan and Wendy finally regain control of "Gossip Girl" from the other teachers and post a list revealing the identities of all of their antonymous sources. | ||||||||
12 | 12 | "Gossip Gone, Girl" | Darren Grant | Kelli Breslin | December 2, 2021 | |||
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No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |||
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13 | 1 | "Deb Brawl in a Blue Dress" | Joshua Safran | Ashley Wigfield | December 1, 2022 | |||
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14 | 2 | "Guess Who's Coming at Dinner" | Joshua Safran | Sigrid Gilmer | December 1, 2022 | |||
After avoiding his friends over the winter break, Obie returns to Constance Billiard at Grace's insistence. Monet attempts to install a social hierarchy at the school, which causes conflict in her friendship with Luna. In response, Julien humiliates Monet in front of a journalist, though Monet reveals that she had manipulated events for more publicity. Thanks to "Gossip Girl", Nick finds out that Zoya has been lying to him and staying at Shan's. To build bridges, Shan's family invite Nick and Zoya for dinner but he berates them for having money, furthering straining his relationship with Zoya. Rumors about the throuple intensify after Max struggles to sleep with other people while waiting for Aki and Audrey to work through their feelings. To throw "Gossip Girl" off the scent, Aki and Audrey concoct a plan however, following a series of miscommunications, they end up revealing their relationship with Max to Kiki, Roy, Gideon and "Gossip Girl". Mike tells Kate he is trying to end corruption at the school by going after Headmistress Burton and they confront her about the bribery. Burton admits that she is relieved to have been exposed and asks them to report her. Against Mike's wishes, Kate gets Burton fired. | ||||||||
15 | 3 | "Great Reputations" | Sophia Takal | Pilar Golden | December 8, 2022 | |||
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16 | 4 | "One Flew Over the Cucks's Nest" | Sophia Takal | Amos Mac | December 15, 2022 | |||
"Gossip Girl" gets evidence that Greyson is cheating on Camille and Kate informs her in-person. Although Camille denies there is anything wrong with her marriage and threatens Kate to stay quiet, she posts the pictures on "Gossip Girl" anyway. Monet confronts her parents, who reveal that they are both involved with the same woman and Camille berates her daughter for getting involved in their relationship. Max and Audrey become suspicious when Aki starts withdrawing from them and find out he is taking PrEP, leading them to believe he is cheating, though he later admits that he was nervous about bottoming and was seeking advice. Julien discovers that Grace is cheating and exposes her at a party, where they find out that Grace is also sleeping with her own brother and Charlotte takes them both away, devastating Obie. Luna convinces Monet that she needs to be kinder in order to stay popular and reveals that she is lonely. Shan confesses what she knows about Nick to Zoya and leaks it to "Gossip Girl", causing Zoya to move out of the apartment. Julien meets up with Graham, a married man, to vent. After sleeping with Mike, Kate finds out that he is trying to expose "Gossip Girl". | ||||||||
17 | 5 | "Games, Trains, and Automobiles" | Satya Bhabha | Ryan Koehn | December 22, 2022 | |||
Graham begins having an affair with Julien, who tells her he and his wife are separated. Kate and Jordan try to work out the identity of Mike's accomplice and he confesses that he is being blackmailed. Jordan visits Mike's home, falling into a trap that he set to catch "Gossip Girl" but Kate texts him to escape and Mike accuses her of working with "Gossip Girl", though she covers by storming off. Nick unsuccessfully tries to make amends with Julien and Zoya, who states that she needs time to process what she has found out. Shan takes Zoya, who is forced to pretend to be Monet, to a rave where she sleeps with Shan's friend's brother and fears she has become pregnant. Audrey becomes paranoid that Aki and Max will break up with her so she crashes their trip and they agree to communicate more. Obie attempts to reconcile with his mother but finds out that she is involved in some suspicious business dealings and he cuts her out of his life. When he returns home, he finds his mother has denied him access to his apartment. Kate berates Jordan for going rogue and Mike overhears them but Jordan takes the blame for being "Gossip Girl" on his own. | ||||||||
18 | 6 | "How to Bury a Millionaire" | Satya Bhabha | Kelli Breslin | December 29, 2022 | |||
19 | 7 | "Dress Me Up! Dress Me Down" | Jennifer Lynch | Tiffany So | January 5, 2023 | |||
20 | 8 | "Y Lu's Mamá También" | Jennifer Lynch | Joe Fazzio | January 12, 2023 | |||
Luna gets the opportunity to style Julia Fox for her film's premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. Luna discovered that her mother, Dolarez, is the movie's star but never told her she was coming to the country. She then finds her mother who asks her to be her stylist instead, which she agrees. However, Luna is hurt when she discovers that Dolarez already has her own stylist, and wants Luna to assist him instead. Monet suggests that Dolarez is jealous of her daughter and urges Luna to attend the red carpet, much to Dolarez' dismay during the event. She later bans Luna from attending the after-party, hurting her even more. Luna finds her grandmother, who has been pretending to be her Spanish maid, who reveals that Dolarez left Luna to live in New York alone at the age of nine because she has been faking her identity as a Mexican for her career. During a confrontation, Dolarez reveals that even though she supports Luna for who she is, she can't stand having a daughter. Meanwhile, Aki who's working at the festival is ignored by Audrey and Max who's busy trying to rescue Kiki's career. Julien tries to make amends with Audrey, who encourages her to attend the opening of Jessica's shop to help Kiki. However, Audrey is secretly scheming to both destroy the opening and humiliate Julien. Zoya and Shan go to the festival to try find Taylor Swift so she can make Gossip Girl stop, but failed and instead find Aki kissing his friend. After seeing Dolarez's relationship with Luna, Monet apologizes to her mother who then asks Kate to make other teachers send in tips about the students, because only "Gossip Girl" can teach their kids a lesson. | ||||||||
21 | 9 | "I Know What You Did Last Summit" | Joshua Safran | Eric Eidelstein | January 19, 2023 | |||
22 | 10 | "I Am Gossip" | Joshua Safran | Sigrid Gilmer & Pilar Golden | January 26, 2023 |
WarnerMedia ordered a revival of the series for HBO Max in July 2019. [33] Although called a "reboot", it was confirmed to be a continuation of the original story by Josh Schwartz. [34] On November 2, 2020, it was announced that Karena Evans would direct the first two episodes of the series. [35] On September 9, 2021, HBO Max renewed the series for a second season. [36] On January 19, 2023, the series was cancelled after two seasons. [2]
The creator and executive producer of the sequel, Safran, says that his priorities for the series are "to focus on stories that are not limited to one demographic.". [37] He also stated "I wanted to be more inclusive; I wanted to showcase a more diverse universe; I wanted to tell more queer stories.". [38]
In November 2019, it was announced Bell would be returning as the voice of Gossip Girl in the new series. [39] In March 2020, it was reported Alyn Lind, Peak, Brown, Fernandez and Gotay were cast. [40] Later that month, Gevinson, Doherty, Chanler-Berat and Moreno were reported to have joined as well. [41] In April 2020, it was reported Smith had joined the cast. [42] In August 2020, Jordan Alexander joined the cast in a starring role. [43] In October 2020, Evan Mock was cast as a series regular, while Benanti was cast in an undisclosed capacity. [44] [45] In March 2021, Lail joined the cast in an undisclosed role. [46] In May 2021, Renée joined the cast in a recurring role. [47] In June 2021, Ferguson and Harris joined the cast in an undisclosed capacities. [48] [49] In June 2022, Michelle Trachtenberg is set to reprise her role from the original series as Georgina Sparks in an undisclosed capacity for the second season. [50] In October 2022, it was announced that Grace Duah has been promoted to series regular for the second season. [20]
Filming for the series was scheduled to begin in March 2020 in New York City [51] but was put on hold due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, and as a result, the release date was pushed back to 2021. [52] Production for the series began on November 2, 2020. [35]
Filming for the second season began on February 4, 2022 in New York City. [53] The series was also shot in Rome, Italy, in August 2022. [54] [55]
Gossip Girl premiered on HBO Max on July 8, 2021. [56] The first six episodes of the series aired weekly, while the second slate of six episodes was released on November 25, 2021. [57] [58] The first season finale was released on December 2, 2021. [59] In June 2021, it was announced that The CW would broadcast the first episode of the sequel on July 9, the day after it premieres on the streaming service, with the episode available to stream on The CW's online platforms after its broadcast. [60] The second season premiered on December 1, 2022. [20]
The series is available to watch in Asia via HBO Go. [61] [62] The series was acquired by BBC One and BBC iPlayer for the United Kingdom. [63] For Canada, it was acquired by Crave. [64] In Belgium, the series was released on Streamz on July 9, 2021. [65] The series was released on Amazon Prime Video India on July 21, 2022. [66]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 38% based on 56 critic reviews, with an average rating of 4.9/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "An ambitious misfire, Gossip Girl stutters more than it struts, stranding a stacked cast in a sumptuous sea of rudderless drama." [67] On Metacritic, the first season has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [68]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has an approval rating of 90% based on 10 critic reviews, with an average rating of 7.1/10. [69] On Metacritic, the second season holds a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [70]
According to Samba TV, 550,000 US households watched the new series in its first four day streaming on HBO Max. [71]
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