XOX-OFF

Gossip Girl reboot delayed until 2021 as coronavirus wreaks havoc on production

GOSSIP Girl fans will be devastated as the new reboot has been delayed due to the coronavirus.

The glamorous teen drama is being pushed back until 2021 because of the pandemic.

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The US hit was heading back to TV screens for the first time since 2012 with a twist - but action has been halted.

HBO Max chief content officer Kevin Reilly told Vulture: "They hadn’t even started production yet.

"They were in pre-production and ready to roll."

He continued: "Things that would have been really meaningful and high profile have gotten pushed back."

The revamped show will focus on a new bunch of bratty private school rich kids whose lives will be chronicled by the mysterious blogger known as Gossip Girl.

The original series spawned such catchphrases as "You know you love me" and "xoxo", based on the elusive Gossip Girl's sign-offs.

The show's official premise reads: "Eight years after the original website went dark, a new generation of New York private school teens are introduced to the social surveillance of Gossip Girl.

"The prestige series will address just how much social media — and the landscape of New York itself — has changed in the intervening years."

The original show, which aired on the CW network in the US, helped launch the careers of stars such as Blake Lively - now married to actor Ryan Reynolds.

While the cast for the new series has not yet been announced, the production team behind the first incarnation will be returning.

Showrunner Joshua Safran will write and executive produce the new season, while series creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage are back on board as executive producers.

Gossip Girl, which aired between 2007 and 2012, will appear on HBO Max, an upcoming streaming service created by Warner Media.

The hit series ran from 2008 to 2012 and starred actress Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgely, Chace Crawford, White Gold's Ed Westwick and Taylor Momsen – with Kristen Bell as the voice of Gossip Girl.

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