Fans were first introduced to the students of Constance Billard School for Girls and St. Jude’s School for Boys when Gossip Girl premiered on The CW on Sept. 19, 2007.
The show about privileged Upper East Side teens starred Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgley, Chace Crawford, Jessica Szohr, Ed Westwick, Taylor Momsen, Kelly Rutherford and Matthew Settle and featured the voice of Kristen Bell as the eponymous, mysterious, ahead-of-its-time gossip site.
Gossip Girl ran for six seasons, with its finale airing on Dec. 17, 2012.
The show was rebooted in 2021 and features students played by Jordan Alexander,Whitney Peak, Eli Brown,Thomas Doherty,Emily Alyn Lind,Evan Mock,Zión Moreno,Savannah Lee Smith and Grace Duah as they walk the halls once attended by their predecessors. The main adult cast features Tavi Gevinson,Johnathan Fernandez, Adam Chanler-Berat, Todd Almond and Laura Benanti.
In honor of the rebooted Gossip Girl’s second season airing on HBO Max, read on to see what the stars of the beloved original series have been up to since the show went off the air.
Blake Lively (Serena van der Woodsen)
Gossip Girlkicked off with Lively’s Serena van derWoodsenreturning to New York after a mysterious absence. She immediately ascends to the top of the social hierarchy at ConstanceBillardSchool for Girls. Prior toGossip Girl,Lively was arguably best known for her role as Bridget inThe Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants movie (2005). Since the CW series came to an end, Lively has made quite a name for herself in the film world. She has starred in The Town (2010), The Green Lantern (2011), Savages (2012), The Age of Adaline (2015), The Shallows (2016), Cafe Society (2016), All I See Is You (2017), A Simple Favor (2018) and The Rhythm Section (2020). Lively directed Taylor Swift’s 2021 music video “I Bet You Think About Me.” She will make her feature-film directorial debut with Seconds, which is an adaptation of the graphic novel by Scott Pilgrim creator Bryan Lee O’Malley.
Leighton Meester (Blair Waldorf)
Blair Waldorf, Serena’s on-again-off-again best friend and fellow queen bee, was known for her witty and sarcastic comebacks, as well as her epic romance with Chuck Bass. Since the series finale, Meester has kept busy by appearing in many films, including That’s My Boy (2012), Life Partners (2014), Like Sunday, Like Rain (2014), By the Gun (2014), Semper Fi (2019) and The Weekend Away (2022). On the small screen, she starred in Fox’s short-lived comedy Making History as Deborah Revere and on ABC’s sitcom Single Parents as Angie D’Amato. Meester currently plays the recurring role of Meredith on How I Met Your Father. Additionally, she made her Broadway debut in the 2014 production of Of Mice and Men. Aside from her acting career, Meester released her debut studio album Heartstrings in 2014.
Penn Badgley (Dan Humphrey)
Dan Humphrey beganGossip Girlas an outsider. While he attends school in Manhattan, he and his family reside in Brooklyn until his father Rufus marries socialite Lily van derWoodsen. His father’s marriage complicates his on-and-off-again relationship with Serena, Lily’s daughter, though the series finale confirms that the couple ultimately gets married. It is also revealed in the finale that Dan is the mastermind behind Gossip Girl. Since saying goodbye to Dan,Badgleyhas appeared in the filmsGreetings from Tim Buckley(2012),Parts per Billion(2014), Cymbeline (2015), The Paper Store(2016), Adam Green’s Aladdin (2016) and Here Today (2021).Badgleycurrently stars as Joe Goldberg in the Lifetime-turned-Netflix psychological thrillerYoubased on the CarolineKepnesnovel of the same name. He is also thefrontmanof the Brooklyn-based bandMOTHXR. Additionally, Badgley has served as co-host of the podcast Podcrushed with Nava Kavelin and Sophie Ansari since May 2022.
Ed Westwick (Chuck Bass)
In the first season ofGossip Girl, Chuck is a womanizer and villain, though he has a strong friendship with Nate. As the series continues, Chuck enters into an epic romance with Blair. Following his father’s death in the series finale, Chuck marries Blair so that she can’t testify against him about the sudden death they both witness. SinceGossip Girlleft the air,Westwickstarred as Kent Grainger in ABC’sWicked City, which was canceled after three episodes in 2015, and appeared in the filmsRomeo & Juliet(2013),Freaks of Nature(2015), Billionaire Ransom(2016), The Crash(2017), Enemy Lines (2020) andMe You Madness(2021). The actor most recently portrayed Victor Swan in the BBC and Netflix seriesWhite Gold from 2017-2019.
Chace Crawford (Nate Archibald)
When introduced in the pilot, Nate is the longtime boyfriend of Blair Waldorf. Nate’s infatuation with Serena ultimately gets in the way of his romance with Blair, but he soon moves on from both of them. SinceGossip Girlcame to an end, Crawford starred as BillyLeFeverin ABC’sBlood & Oil, which was canceled after one season in 2015, and has appeared in the filmsUndrafted(2016),Eloise(2017), I Do… Until I Don’t(2017), All About Nina (2018), Charlie Says (2018), Nighthawks (2019) and Inheritance (2020). He will next appear in the upcoming films Riptide and Reunion. Additionally, Crawford currently stars as Kevin Moskowitz /The Deep on Amazon Prime Video’s The Boys, which premiered in 2019.
Taylor Momsen (Jenny Humphrey)
Jenny is first introduced on the series as Dan’s innocent younger sister. After trying to impress Blair in order to join her clique, Jenny sabotages her goal when Blair discovers Nate’s interest in the high school freshman. Following a plan to take down Serena, which goes awry, in season 4, Jenny leaves New York City to attend school in London, withMomsenleaving the show. Jenny briefly appears in the series finale to attend Dan and Serena’s wedding. Since her role as Jenny,Momsenquit acting to focus on her career as a musician. She joined rock band The Pretty Reckless in 2009 as lead singer and guitar player. The band has released four studio albums: Light Me Up (2010), Going to Hell (2014),Who You Selling For (2016) and Death by Rock and Roll (2021).
Kelly Rutherford (Lily van der Woodsen)
Lily van derWoodsen, the mother of Serena and Eric (Connor Paolo), is a philanthropist and socialite. Throughout the series she is involved in an on-again-off-again relationship with Dan’s father, Rufus. Since leaving Lily behind, Rutherford has made guest appearances onBones, Being Mary Jane, The Mysteries of Laura,QuanticoandJane the Virgin.She also starred on Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists as Claire Hotchkiss in 2019 and played the recurring role of Melissa Daniels on Dynasty from 2018-2019.
Matthew Settle (Rufus Humphrey)
Former musician Rufus is Dan and Jenny’s loving father. Though his character is based in Brooklyn, he eventually moves his family to the Upper East Side to live with the van derWoodsens. SinceGossip Girl‘s finale, Settle has focused on a career in film. He has appeared inOuija(2014),Marshall’s Miracle(2015), The Faith of Anna Waters(2016) and Valentine (2017). Settle also guest starred as Daniel Wolf in one episode of Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders in 2016. Aside from his turn as Rufus, Settle may be best known for his role as RonaldSpeirsin HBO’s 2001 miniseriesBand of Brothers.
Jessica Szohr (Vanessa Abrams)
Vanessa starts Gossip Girl as Dan’s best friend and an outsider to her Upper East Side peers. Throughout the series, she has romantic relationships with both Nate and Dan. Following a fight with Dan at the end of season 4, Vanessa moves to Spain, andSzohrleft the series. But she made a cameo in the series finale, reading a text message that reveals Gossip Girl’s true identity. Since leaving the CW series,Szohrhas starred in TV series like Complications, Kingdomand The Orville. She also appeared in Showtime’sTwin Peaksrevival and season 8 of Shameless. On the film side, she has acted in projects includingThe Internship(2013),10 Cent Pistol(2014),Two Night Stand(2014), Ted 2(2015), Clover (2020) and the upcoming film All-Star Weekend. In addition to acting, Szohrcurrently hosts the podcast XOXO with Jessica Szohr, where she reminisces about Gossip Girl, shares behind-the-scenes secrets and interviews her former co-stars.
Michelle Trachtenberg (Georgina Sparks)
Georgina may not have been a regular part of theGossip Girlgang, but she certainly made sure that her presence was known. While initially introduced as a friend from Serena’s past, Georgina quickly redefined herself as a villain to the main characters. During season 5 she even took on the role of Gossip Girl and ran the popular website for a number of episodes. Trachtenberg reprised her role as Georgina in season 2 of the HBO Max reboot. BeforeGossip Girl,Trachtenberghad already made a name for herself in the world of television, playing Dawn Summers inBuffy the Vampire Slayer.Her post-Gossip Girltelevision appearances include guest spots onSleepy Hollow, Criminal Minds and NCIS: Los Angeles.She starred in the 2016 Lifetime movieSister Citiesas Dallas Baxter and appeared in and produced several episodes of thego90seriesGuidance in 2015. Since 2021, Trachtenberg has been producing and hosting the Tubitrue crimetelevision seriesMeet, Marry, Murder.
Kaylee DeFer (Ivy Dickens)
Ivy is a con artist who first appears in season 4 as Charlie Rhodes, Serena’s estranged cousin. It is revealed in the season finale that Ivy is an aspiring actress who was hired to play Charlie by Lily’s sister in order for her to gain access to the real daughter’s trust fund. Ivy stuck around, though, and became the Upper East Side’s resident villain in later seasons. SinceGossip Girl’s conclusion,DeFerappeared in two episodes of CBS’How I Met Your Mother before apparently taking a break from acting after giving birth to three sons in 2013, 2017 and 2019.
This list was originally published on Sept. 19, 2017 at 12:56 p.m. PT. It was last updated on Jan. 12, 2023, at 11:56 p.m. PT.
