Gossip Girl reboot criticized for moralizing wealthy characters, losing original's savage edge

The 2021 HBO reboot of Gossip Girl, originally airing from 2007 to 2012, has drawn criticism for transforming its wealthy teenage characters into morally conscious figures. Unlike the original series' unrepentant Upper East Side private school students, the new version features protagonists who wrestle with their privilege, according to co-creator Jonathan Safran. Characters now deliver political monologues about inequality and use phrases like "fuck the patriarchy," which critics find inorganic. The show's diverse cast includes non-white leads and explores pansexuality, moving beyond the original's exclusively white, heterosexual world. However, the reboot lacks the savage amorality that defined the original, where characters like Chuck Bass embodied raw entitlement without consequence. In the 2021 series, Max Wolfe replaces Chuck as a polyamorous stud who asks for consent, while influencer Julien references "guilty rich" characters like her boyfriend Otto 'Obie' Bergmann IV. Critics note the show blends wealth pornography with right-on dialogue, provoking questions about its authenticity. Only the first four episodes have been screened for reviewers, leaving open whether later installments might recover the original's caustic flair.