| CITAZIONE Gossip Girl: 8 Things to Know About Episode 100 (aka Blair's Royally Iffy Wedding)
The well-heeled denizens of Gossip Girl occupied Wall Street — namely, Cipriani Club 55 — on Saturday night to fete the CW series’ 100th episode, airing Jan. 30. Seeing as the landmark hour centers around Blair’s wedding to Prince Louis, the cast was on strict orders to, ironically, not gossip about what happens, so “I can’t tell you” and “I’m not allowed to say” were frequent refrains. Even so, TVLine gleaned enough teasey tidbits to paint a provocative wedding picture….
WHAT’S IN A NAME? | It took some coaxing, but executive producer Josh Safran ultimately was too excited to share with us what he called ”the perfect title” for the 100th episode: “The title is ‘G.G.,’ as in the movie Gigi” — but spelled as in the show’s monogram. Nonetheless, I point you to Gigi‘s IMDb page should anyone wish to read into that name choice.
ARE WE IN FACT HEADING FOR A WEDDING? | “A wedding will take place in the episode,” exec producer Stephanie Savage promised. Upon noting my raised eyebrow, she added with an evil-ish chuckle, “But I didn’t say how much of the wedding.” Yeah, we’ll have more on that in a bit….
RUNAWAY RUMOR | The “tell-tale” photo (seen here) that made rounds last week and convinced (some) fans that Blair will bail on her big day? The producers were quick to note that the scene Leighton Meester shot could be but a dream.
DANCING WITH THE U.E.S.-ERS | Mark Piznarski, whose directing credits include Gossip Girl‘s pilot and Episode 100, teased that at the very start of the hour, “You’re going to see something that the cast has never done before.” Though he kept mum on details, Blake Lively later revealed to the press that on Friday, “We shot a big dance sequence.”
DAN & BLAIR | Turning to one of Blair’s non-royal romantic options, Penn Badgley told me that come wedding day, “Dan has a role to play that is not conventional” — and once viewers lay witness to what it is, “There will be a lot of gasping,” he reckons.
CHUCK & BLAIR | After waving me off somewhat, explaining, “I’ve got specific notes about what I’m allowed to say,” Ed Westwick did allow that “of course” there will be Chuck/Blair scenes in No. 100. When I relayed some readers’ wish that Chuck “ride up on a horse and whisk the bride away,” he shared, “I’ve actually been taking riding lessons … but no, it’s not going to happen. The horse part, that is.”
FATHER SCOOPS BEST! | Remember how Savage hinted above at a perhaps-waylaid wedding? To hear John Shea (aka the father of the bride) tell it, Blair at the very least gets to the altar. In describing the emotions he felt walking his TV daughter down the aisle, he said, “When you see her [in the dress], it sort of stops your breath. And then as we approach the altar, there’s the whole cast, everybody who’s been there for all these five years.” Oops?
HAPPILY EVER AFTER? | Previewing the episode, Meester herself said, “[Blair]‘s engaged to a prince, so what could be better than that? But then you realize that the fairytale isn’t 100-percent perfect.” So which gent does she think could offer a better chance at giving the would-be princess a happy ending? “Her and Chuck have had ups and down, and as much as everyone loves them together I think that them having time apart has actually helped Blair grow — and weirdly helped me grow, too,” the actress offered. She then continued, “The one relationship I’d love to see play out is Blair and Dan — just selfishly, honestly, because I love working with Penn. So we’ll see!” CITAZIONE 'Gossip Girl' scoop: Bosses planning on another season. Plus, the cast teases big moments in 100th episode
Spotted: The cast and crew of Gossip Girl partying it up at Cipriani on Wall Street in New York in honor of the show’s 100th episode, which airs Jan. 30. But fans also have reason to celebrate: While the show has yet to be officially picked up for another season, Gossip Girl executive producers told to EW just prior to the bash that they believe a sixth season is imminent — and are planning accordingly.
“We’ve had no one saying to us, ‘Wrap it up. This is the last season.’ So we’re not [treating the season finale] as such,” said EP Joshua Safran, hoping to quell some fans’ fears that their favorite teen drama would soon fall victim to dwingling ratings.
Peter Roth, president of Warner Bros. Television, also offered up his vote of confidence. “I can’t really say at this point, but I would hope and expect that there would be at least another year — if not years– to come.” Which is good news, considering executive producer Stephanie Savage said the finale would “absolutely” leave fans wanting to see the next season. (Translation: I’d place my bet on a cliffhanger.) “We see [the finale] as a continuing, developing story,” Safran said, adding that the writers have about 6 more episodes to pen. “At the same time, like every season, we plan to show the characters’ evolution and where we’re going to go with all the twists and turns that are about to happen. So there are no plans to wrap it up.”
More immediately, most of the night’s chatter related to the show’s big 100th episode that will center around Blair’s royal wedding to Prince Louis. But, as fans have been teased, there will definitely be more to this story.”I think it’s our biggest episode since the pilot,” says Safran. “I feel like if you’re a fan of the show and you’ve been watching from the beginning, you’re going to feel rewarded. But I also feel like if you’re tuning in after a long time, I think you may feel like you’ve missed a lot, but we really try to hit on everything that’s happened since [early on]. I’m very proud of it.”
Meanwhile, Blake Lively told reporters that the cast just finished filming a big dance sequence in which ” we were all dressed as people who are not ourselves.” Matthew Settle confirmed “wedding crasher” Georgina would cause “epic” trouble. And 100th episode director Mark Piznarski, who also directed the pilot, admitted there were some moments in the episode that “brought tears to my eyes.” “To see our kids — I do still refer to them as ‘my kids’ — going through something [difficult], that, as a parent, is a very emotional thing. So this episode is terrific.”
Beyond that, the cast was mostly sworn to secrecy about the specific ongoings and, naturally, couldn’t answer key questions that have been swirling the interwebs. (Will Blair actually marry Louis? What of the royal baby?) But Ed Westwick did have a small nugget for fans of Chuck and Blair, saying — without specifics — that they will likely find themselves pleased by the end of the hour. “It’s difficult for me to speculate as to the opinions of fans…but I don’t think they’re going to be disappointed, for sure,” he said. When you sing happy birthday to someone you love and see diamonds you wish were all free...please say that you won't, I pray that you don't forget me.   |
