Here’s Everything We Know About HBO Max’s ‘Gossip Girl’ Reboot

Attention, Upper East Siders: Gossip Girl’s official comeback has finally arrived. No, this isn’t just some elaborate plan orchestrated by Georgina Sparks. We have true confirmation and a trailer and pics from the set!!

HBO Max is being so kind to us with gifting a spin-off of the hit CW show, and trust us when we say that there’s a lot to take in. Here’s what we know about it so far…including what the show’s creator said about who Gossip Girl is this time around.

The official trailer is HERE!

I just have to say this about the beautifully sexy trailer: The cast? Stunning. The costumes? Runway-worthy. Kristen Bell back as the oh-so-mysterious voice-over? In the words of Queen Britney, gimme gimme more.

We know when the show is hitting our TV screens!

Sound the alarms, guys, gals, and non-binary pals—thanks to Cosmo’s May/June cover drop (you should really read the story, that’s all I’m saying!), producer Joshua Safran gave us the news we’ve literally been waiting for since the show was first announced.

“Oh hi also,” he tweeted in late April. “Show drops in July.” And if we’re going to be specific…it’s July 8—aka TONIGHT!!

Um, say what? If this didn’t stop you in your tracks, then we need to have a discussion STAT.

The show is about a brand-new group of teens…and the cast is star-studded.

HBO Max made a point to say the new show is going to fast-forward eight years after the site logged off and it’s prepared to “address just how much social media—and the landscape of New York—has changed in the intervening years.” Hmm…not exactly sure what this means, but maybe we’re getting Euphoria centered around an NYC private school? Either way, please count me in.

And if you’re truly upset about some of our OG cast members not making a return…we get it. While we won’t get to see any scenes with Serena, Blair, Nate, Chuck, Dan, or the rest of the Constance Billard/St. Jude’s crew, here’s a little light of hope to restore your faith. Kristen Bell is returning as the resident Gossip Girl, and let’s be honest—is there any choice other than the iconic woman herself?

We totally understand how all of this is enough for you to grab yourself a mimosa (or have Dorota pour one for you), but HBO Max has cast an amazing group of individuals, and trust us when we say you’re going to be so thrilled with the all-new GG crew.

First up, we’ve got Jordan Alexander as Julien Calloway:

Next, meet Savannah Smith portraying Monet de Haan:

Here we have Zión Moreno as Luna La:

Well, hello, Thomas Doherty as Max Wolfe (you might recognize him from Hulu’s High Fidelity):

Time to introduce Emily Alyn Lind portraying Audrey Hope:

Welcome, Tavi Gevinson as Kate Geller!

Hey there, Eli Brown, aka Otto “Obie” Bergmann IV:

Nice to meet you, Evan Mock as Akeno “Aki” Menzies:

And how beautiful does Whitney Peak look as Zoya Lott? Chilling Adventures of Sabrina fans will definitely recognize her:

Along with this extremely hot cast, we’re also going to get a couple of other stars in the mix. Adam Chanler-Berat is expected to join the show (he’s basically Broadway royalty, with roles in Next to Normal and Amélie), along with Jonathan Fernandez (Lethal Weapon) and Jason Gotay. Oh, and how can we forget the force that is Laura Benanti?

I’m just going to say what we’re all thinking: Damn, they’re all gorgeous!

There will be at least 10 episodes.

Thanks to an official statement from Deadline, fans can expect 10 all-new episodes on HBO Max, each running around an hour long. I don’t know about you, but I’m completely ready to start bingeing right now.

The first pics of the cast filming dropped in November 2020.

I MEAN, look at these pics of the cast sitting on the steps of the Met and try not to get excited. I dare you.

Extra props to the cast for staying safe and masking up when the cameras were off.

The show is prioritizing diversity this time around.

Some of the main leads starring in the new Gossip Girl are BIPOC, and the show will feature LGBTQ+ storylines, making us all extremely happy. As Safran said at the 2019 Vulture Festival, he’s determined to reflect more representation this time around.

“I was the only gay writer I think the entire time I was there. Even when I went to private school in New York in the ’90s, the school didn’t necessarily reflect what was on Gossip Girl,” he explained. “So this time around, the leads are non-white. There’s a lot of queer content on this show. It is very much dealing with the way the world looks now, where wealth and privilege come from, and how you handle that. The thing I can’t say is there is a twist, and that all relates to the twist.”

The OG cast wasn’t opposed to making a cameo.

Chace Crawford (aka Nate Archibald) actually opened up about the possibility to return to the Upper East Side, telling August Man in September 2019 that he’d be down to make an appearance or two.

“If there’s an opening in the future for doing a cameo, I would definitely be open to it,” the actor said. “The show was a big part of my life and was really special. I loved everyone on it, from the cast to the crew. We were a real family.”

One thing Chace admitted? That it would be a long shot to get the original cast back together. “It would be very tough to get everybody on board, I think, because of their schedules,” he told Digital Spy. “Penn, Leighton, Ed…they’re all doing really good TV shows. The show might come in the form of new characters. I would absolutely cameo. I’d have to!” Um, obviously!

Leighton Meester (aka Blair Waldorf) pretty much said the same thing as Chace, but there was just one problem—“no one’s ever asked me,” Leighton told E! News before the new show was officially confirmed. “No one’s ever talked to me about it except for in interviews, and I always say the same: I never say never, so I don’t know. No one’s sent me that information.”

So…that’s a definite possibility, right?!

As far as the rest of the cast’s thoughts? Well, that’s to be determined for now. After all, we can’t take Penn away from You or Blake from whatever movie she’s filming next! But imagine the star power it would bring….

But the OG cast will be featured on the show.

Because you can’t be doing a Gossip Girl spin-off without somehow featuring those who dominated Constance Billard first. Creator Josh Schwartz actually spoke about this fact, explaining in a December 2019 interview with Entertainment Tonight how the show is operating in the same world as its predecessor.

“They are a part of the world,” Safran said. “The characters talk about them and that they do exist. So yeah, I would love to have them come back. The show jumped five years in the future when it ended and we are past that five years now, so it’s whole new things that they could be doing.”

And we already know something about who Gossip Girl is….

Schwartz has no interest in keeping the identity of Gossip Girl a mystery this time around. Here’s what he told E! News:

That’s right. You’re Gossip Girl. I’m Gossip Girl. We’re all Gossip Girl.

Plus, here’s a little extra intel from Cosmo’s May/June 2021 issue:

Okay, we’re gonna go now, and we’ll update as soon as more info is available. XOXO, Cosmo.

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