"I don't think network TV really has the balls to make one of their [teenage] series regulars gay." That's what Gossip Girl's Penn Badgley told me last Fall when I spoke with him over the phone -- guess he wasn't a big Dawson's Creek fan -- but even the writers on his own show are proving him wrong.

Now that Eric van der Woodsen (Connor Paolo, photo, left) is out of the closet, will he disappear into the shadows? Perhaps do another stint at the Ostroff Center, leaving more room for storylines about scheming and hot hetero sex? Executive Producer Stephanie Savage says not. We will indeed watch this young kid come to terms with his sexuality over time, see him dating and maturing. "One of the reasons we wanted to do this story was because we'd have places to go with Eric's character," Savage explained. "It felt like a really organic way to dimensionalize and activate Eric, so Connor Paolo would have some great stories to play next year. I think he does a terrific job and is up taking on more than he has up to this point."

As for Asher, Eric's first love-gone-wrong, he may be heading back to the Ostroff Center after last night's very public humiliation. Savage tells me his Gossip storyline is over for now, but they really enjoyed working with Jesse Swenson (photo, right), the actor who played him, so there's no reason why Asher couldn't rear his ugly, Upper West Side head again later ... .

• Check Out Zap2it's Guide to 'Gossip Girl'

Comments

You're Hot!

Dude | May 6, 2008 10:06:32 AM | #

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korbi,

i defended you on one of your gossip girl blogs because a poster said you're way into GG.

now, i side him.

dont you have anything other than GG????? anythign????? this is getting boring. you are better than this korbi.

James | May 6, 2008 10:34:29 AM | #

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So she's done 3 "Gossip Girl" posts. Big deal. It's a popular show that had a much-talked-about, big episode last night. There's only a couple more episodes until the end of the season. I'm sure she'll move on once it's over for the season.

Angie | May 6, 2008 10:44:31 AM | #

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Yeah, James...shut the frak up. Maybe you'd enjoy reading drivel about 2.5 Men, but there are a lot more of us who are HUGE Gossip Girl fans.

BTW, Conner is hot, too.

Nick | May 6, 2008 10:52:13 AM | #

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asher may be "...headed to switzerland for the semester..." but not the ostroff center. did u even watch the show or follow the storyline, khorbi? this was made clear in last night's ep.

the_shoparazzi | May 6, 2008 11:58:06 AM | #

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i wish the ratings were better. only 4 million viewers a week? maybe the cw should rerun the eps like it does antm. it'd be perfect in those dry timeslots (maybe friday nights or sundays after the game) so that new viewers could catch up and start watching.

the_shoparazzi | May 6, 2008 12:01:47 PM | #

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hey shoparazzi, Gossip Girl actually does rerun on the CW. i believe it's at 6 p.m (5 central) on Sundays...
thanks for coming to my defense guys. i've got a lot more to cover today... NON Gossip Girl-related, i promise. stay tuned... ;)

korbi_ghosh | May 6, 2008 1:26:44 PM | #

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yay korbi!

looking forward to it. this is why i like korbi, she responds to people. makes her more human

are you going to the upfronts too? coz you should.

kristen and jen are going. looks like they replaced you with jen.

James | May 6, 2008 2:28:48 PM | #

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thanks, James :) sadly, i won't be at Upfronts. but even if i was still at E!, we had decided that Jen would go and i would stay in L.A. to hold the fort down, so... anyway, maybe next year ;)kg

korbi_ghosh | May 6, 2008 2:46:00 PM | #

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great gossip girl posts!

jodi | May 6, 2008 7:19:24 PM | #

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Well, so Georgina heads back to NY FROM Switzerland, and Asher is headed from NY TO Switzerland?

Great, just keep sending the baddies over here... :)

Greets
Lambsilencer (Bern, Switzerland)

Lambsilencer | May 7, 2008 2:50:20 AM | #

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Asher isn't headed to Switzerland. Blair made a joke that his being outed meant that "it was time for a semester in Switzerland," which is what happened to Serena when she got out of control and like how Blair was going to run away to France when the whole Chuck/Nate scandal erupted.

Julie | May 7, 2008 1:35:10 PM | #

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if Jesse Swenson came back to GG i would die. i love him!!

Kim | May 7, 2008 8:21:09 PM | #

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I'm glad they're not just going to shove Eric to a corner all because he's gay. Also, I'd like to see Asher make a return. He was a total ass, but I'm guessing he probably has a reason to be so scared of coming out and just being himself.

Plus, I thought Jesse Swenson was pretty cool as Asher, so I hope he does come back to the show.

Steph | May 15, 2008 5:33:13 PM | #

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