Fall TV Blog

In a new clip of the season premiere of Gossip Girl, Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively), who’s headed to college at Brown, is spotted slipping away from her summer fling, Carter (Sebastian Stan).

How does she do it? By staging a photo op for waiting paparazzi, of course. Well done for our young starlet! Gossip Girl returns to the CW Monday (9 p.m. EST).

For more Gossip Girl scoops — including more on Carter and Serena — check out our gallery of Gossip Girl season 3 spoilers.

Tell us: Which Gossip Girl character did you miss the most?

The big gossip about Gossip Girl this week? That Ed Westwick is filming an episode in which his character, Chuck Bass, kisses another man.

Up-and-coming actor Neal Bledsoe plays the object of Bass’s affection, EW.com reports.

Bledsoe reportedly plays an NYU administrator who is looking for a student to give the freshman speech. Leighton Meester’s character, Blair Waldorf, reportedly sets Bass up with him to boost her chances at getting the gig.

The Chuck Bass character had flings with men and women in the Gossip Girl books by Cecily von Ziegesar, but this will be his first gay encounter on the show.
– Tim Nudd

Giovanni Rufino/THE CW

She’s the new kid on the Gossip Girl block, but Hilary Duff says the star-studded cast is making her feel right at home.

“Everyone’s been really, really gracious to me and sweet to me,” Duff told reporters Thursday night at a NYC celebration for Charlotte Ronson’s I “Heart” Ronson collection for JCPenney.

Duff reportedly will play Olivia Burke, a movie star who enrolls at New York University and rooms with Jessica Szohr’s character, Vanessa.

“I’m a huge fan of the show. They called me and said come on and do a few episodes. I jumped at the chance,” she said on the red carpet outside the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers.

Due to a packed summer schedule, Duff — who recently returned from Columbia, where she distributed food to poor children through the charity Blessings in a Backpack — says she hasn’t hung out personally with the GG cast much yet, but has enjoyed spending time with them on-set.

“Blake [Lively] and Penn [Badgley] are really amazing. She’s been so so sweet to me,” she said, when asked about the real-life couple. “And I’ve known him for a few years. We’ve kind of lived in the same neighborhood in L.A., just growing up.”

Another first-timer joining her on the Gossip Girl set this season: Tyra Banks, who will play actress Ursula whose roles include cultural icon Josephine Baker.

“It was fun to work with her in a different atmosphere than appearing on her show,” Duff told reporters. “She looked beautiful and did a really great job. She had the flat hair that squiggles on her forehead. Very flapper-ish!” –Laura Hahn

Donna Ward/ABACA

When Gossip Girl returns for season 3, fans of the show can count on new friends, new fashions, new schools and even a new mom. Actress Gina Torres will play Vanessa’s mother on the CW series, reports TVGuide.com.

Torres, who has appeared on Alias and Dirty Sexy Money, will step into the role of Gabriela Abrams, a “free spirit” who lives “off the grid” in Vermont, according to the site.

She’ll act opposite Vanessa, played by Jessica Szohr, the independent Brooklynite often entangled with a certain Upper East Side crowd. Gabriela is said to have some strong opinions about her daughter, who will be a freshman at New York University along with her friend Dan Humphrey (Penn Badgley) and Upper East Side princess Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester).

Torres is set to appear on two episodes and then will return during the third season, which premieres on the CW Sept. 14.

Get more scoop on the upcoming season of Gossip Girl. –Jennifer Wren

Frederick M. Brown/Getty; Michael N. Todaro/FilmMagic

Just when you thought Gossip Girl couldn’t get anymore glamorous, the third season is set to return with a bang. “We have our big Polo match in the first episode, we go to Sotheby’s for an auction in the third episode and in the fourth episode, we have a big movie premiere at Ziegfeld [Theater],” says the show’s executive producer Stephanie Savage.

And amidst all this glitz and glam, Gossip’s graduates are getting ready to go back-to-school and things are never too easy, are they? Spoiler alerts to come … (more…)

Leighton Meester and her boyfriend Sebastian Stan may not be friendly on Gossip Girl, but in real life he feels fortunate to be in a relationship with the star.

“I’m a really lucky guy,” Stan, 25, told reporters at the premiere of Taking Woodstock in New York City on Wednesday. “She’s the most interesting, sophisticated, talented and an extremely funny person that I know. She’s really hilarious.”

Though Stan gives his costar Ed Westwick the evil eye when his character Chuck Bass gets to make out with Meester’s Blair Waldorf, it’s all in jest — and he says everyone on set is professional when it comes to romantic scenes.

“It’s work and everyone shares the same mentality when it comes to that. But we all laugh about it,” he says. “The good part is I get to go home with her.”

(more…)

Here’s a scoop for Gossip Girl: Tyra Banks is coming to the Upper East Side.

A Gossip Girl source confirms that the Top Model host will be showing off her acting skills on the CW show.

Banks will appear in an episode during Gossip Girl’s third season, which returns Sept. 14.

Go behind the scenes of the new season and get dish from Gossip Girl stars Leighton Meester, Penn Badgley and Jessica Szohr in our exclusive video. –Aaron Parsley

Tell us: What are you predictions for Tyra’s turn on Gossip Girl?

J.Graylock/JPI

With the exception of some new faces, not too much is known about the next season of Gossip Girl, except for where the characters will be attending college now that their high school days have come to an end. And with Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester), Vanessa Abrams (Jessica Szohr), and Dan Humphrey (Penn Badgley) all enrolled at NYU, it made sense that the actors spent Monday evening filming a scene at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral School in the heart of New York City’s Nolita neighborhood, far from their former Upper East Side stomping grounds.

(more…)

The third season of Gossip Girl, which began filming last month in New York, will include even more twists than the previous two, says Jessica Szohr, who plays Vanessa on the CW show.

“It’s like a new chapter in everyone’s life,” Szohr, 24, told PEOPLE Wednesday at a Charlotte Russe fashion event in New York. “We’re all off to college, we’re working. There’s a lot of guest stars coming on, new relationships are formed.”

In addition to Hilary Duff, former Privileged actress Joanna Garcia will play a new love interest for heartthrob Chace Crawford. Garcia plays a Texas socialite who rivals Crawford’s Nate Archibald in wealth and status — and she just might be off-limits.

“We have sort of a Romeo and Juliet love story,” Garcia tells PEOPLE.

While romances bloom on set during the new season, the off-screen romances between stars Blake Lively and Penn Badgley and Szohr and Ed Westwick make the cast a tight-knit bunch. But Garcia said the close group has welcomed her with open arms. (more…)

Hilary Duff is coming to start some drama on the Upper East Side.

The singer and actress is joining the cast of Gossip Girl for several episodes, reports EW.com.

Duff will play Olivia Burke, a famous film star in search of the normal college experience. Her school of choice will be New York University, where Blair (Leighton Meester), Dan (Penn Badgley) and Vanessa (Jessica Szohr) were also accepted.

And in an excellent twist, Olivia will be rooming with Vanessa! Will they be friends? How will Blair react? And could she catch the eye of a certain Brooklynite?

Duff’s first episode is set to air Oct. 5.

Tell us: Are you excited to see Hilary Duff as a famous co-ed on Gossip Girl?

Michael Caulfield/WireImage