Spoilers ahead. HBO Max's Gossip Girl reboot introduces viewers to a whole new cast of characters — and with them, an inevitable whole new slew of high drama. But as with the beginning of any new show, things can get confusing, and it can take some time to form an attachment to the couples and characters. But there's one couple that has the internet already invested and, surprisingly, neither of them go to Constance.
Queen bee Julien Calloway's father, successful record producer Davis Calloway (Luke Kirby), has already been stealing Gossip Girl fans' hearts. He's no Rufus Humphrey — he's edgier, a whole lot richer, and harbours a few of his own secrets. Audiences learn about one particular secret in Episode 3, which is that the widower has been quietly dating Lola Morgan (Elizabeth Lail) while living out of his secret second apartment in the city.
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can’t wait to watch the new gg episode to see luke kirby for one second
— Annette 💫 (@lilys_aldrin) July 16, 2021
i just think that luke kirby in gossip girl pic.twitter.com/ofZ43DtzKG
— deena (@70sfolkIore) July 15, 2021
I'd like @torilasso to explain what exactly Luke Kirby is doing on #GossipGirl . It's some sort of Ryan Gosling/Tom Hardy "New York-er" thing that feels like it's from a different show. pic.twitter.com/ddEZV1r1Cx
— Phillip Iscove (@pmiscove) July 16, 2021
My biggest crush on gossip girl would be Luke Kirby
— Eliza Huber (@elizagracehuber) July 16, 2021
You may recognize American-Canadian Kirby as Lenny Bruce on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, for which he won an Emmy in 2019. Lail, on the other hand, played Beck on Netflix's You season 1. In the thriller, Beck is stalked by the show's protagonist Joe (Penn Badgley), which makes it all the more ironic that she's stalked again by Julien in Gossip Girl as the teenager tries to investigate her father's secret romance. (And that Badgley himself starred in the original Gossip Girl.)
The parallel was not lost on the internet.
not her getting stalked in both universes https://t.co/fXlSSuDyYR
— csw (@H00TL1N3) July 21, 2021
the stalking elizabeth lail cinematic universe #GossipGirl You (2018) pic.twitter.com/LDbrIsWW7j
— Ryán (@ryanvillaluzzz) July 22, 2021
At the end of episode 3, Julien makes up with her dad and tells him that she wants to get to know his new girlfriend, which means fans will likely be seeing a lot more of Kirby and Lail together. And who knows, if this keeps up (we finally care about the Gossip Girl adults? Who knew?), maybe the die-hards will inspire a Davis spinoff.