There’s some good news on the horizon for Gossip Girl fans: a reboot is in the works. However, while we eagerly wait for more information on the resurrection of an iconic series focused around the drama and glam of New York’s Upper East Side, it’s nice to get nostalgic about what the series once was.
One of the key characters was no doubt Serena van der Woodsen, a blonde bombshell known as the “It” girl of the Upper East Side. Known for her countless relationships, party-girl image, and impeccable boho fashion, Serena is one of the two main characters in the series, constantly followed and monitored by the anonymous Gossip Girl. Here are 10 facts about her that you may have even never heard.
She Loves Vespas
Serena has a romantic vision of what she wants her life to be like. This is evident in the multiple references towards European countries like France and Italy, which she associates with a glamorous, artistic and carefree lifestyle.
Serena spent one of her summers in Italy, which is how she fell in love with Vespas and driving around a city exploring with her beau. This is how Dan was also inspired to make a romantic gesture for her and rent out a Vespa for the two of them.
She Makes Decisions On A Whim
Serena is close friends with Blair Waldorf, who’s known as the most scheming and power-obsessed person in all of Upper East Side. While it might be easy to dump her into the same pile as Blair, Serena isn’t actually as calculated as her best friend.
Most of her decisions are taken on a whim and are reactionary to the events that occur in her life. She’s very independent and quick to make judgments, which is why her decisions might sometimes seem counterproductive and cause even more drama.
She Hasn’t Eaten Bread In A While
In order to be the glorified “It” girl of the Upper East Side, one has to work hard at it. Serena, however, isn’t ever really seen working out. Much of her life is spent at parties and other gatherings drinking and eating delicious food.
Well, her secret is out, because it turns out she hasn’t eaten bread for the longest time in her life. To be more precise, Serena hasn’t had bread since she was a middle school student, which might explain why she maintains her amazing form.
She Was A Model At Age 12
Like many privileged people, Serena has enjoyed success early on in her life. No doubt through connections in her family, she was able to be a model already at the young age of 12. It’s revealed that she actually made a print ad for GAP at the time.
We see her modeling dreams further come to life through the series as she models for Eleanor Waldorf. And really, it does make sense. Who wouldn’t want the “It” girl of the Upper East Side to represent their brand?
She Becomes An Actress In The Books
Gossip Girl isn’t just about the drama the characters are going through, but also about how they end up finding themselves and their paths through life. Serena ends up rejecting Brown in the TV series, stating that it just isn’t a place for her and that her heart isn’t into it enough to put herself through the opportunity.
In the books, Serena actually ends up becoming a famous actress. She travels to Hollywood where her career truly kickstarts, a turn of events which is never seen in the TV series, where she instead ends up married to Dan Humphrey.
She’s 15 At The Start Of The Show
It might be really hard to believe, but the first season of Gossip Girl follows the characters when they’re mere high school students at the prestigious Constance Billard School for Girls and St Jude’s School for Boys.
Both of these elite private schools are basically designed for teenagers from 15 years old and up, which means that the characters were surprisingly young during the first season, despite all the mature themes and drama that surrounded them. Certainly, Serena never looked 15, not even for a moment.
She’s The True Heroine
It’s been debated over and over again who the actual heroine of Gossip Girl is. While it might be safe to say that everything focuses around Blair, it’s actually Serena that represents the true main character of the series. She’s the classic heroine, who seeks to do good but makes bad decisions along the way.
Meanwhile, Blair considered more of an anti-heroine, due to her personality that makes her less likable and kind than Serena. Their duality, however, is what makes the show truly interesting.
She Suffers From Commitment Issues
Serena is one of the most popular people on the Upper East Side, due to her looks and her party animal personality. As we see in the show, countless men will easily line up to date her and to be a part of her life. However, she always seems to switch to someone else after a little while.
The main reason for her behavior lies in her mother Lily’s marital issues. Due to her example, Serena herself has become afraid of true commitment, while ironically chasing the ideal romance in hopes of finding it.
She’s Obsessed With Nate In The Books
Serena and Nate might seem like the perfect couple, both popular and good-looking on the Upper East Side. At first, that does seem to be the case as Serena returns to New York to find an angered Blair Waldorf confronting her of sleeping with Nate.
Although the two of them have a bit of chemistry, they end up becoming friends above all else. In the books, however, Serena is obsessed with Nate until the very end, when Nate eventually departs New York in order to ensure his presence doesn’t tear Blair’s and Serena’s friendship apart.
She Dresses Like Kate Moss & Tinsley Mortimer
Gossip Girl is very well known for its amazing costume work. The outfits and fashion statements seen in the show defined an era of fashion in the real world, which is why it has been praised so much. Serena’s look was characterized by her boho-inspired outfits, with tons of flashy accessories and her messy blonde hair.
It was said that the main inspiration for her character was Kate Moss, as well as a famous socialite Tinsley Mortimer. We have to say, both sources of inspiration are very apparent in Blake Lively’s look throughout the series.
