Posts

nyc

Actor Michelle Trachtenberg Passes Away At Age 39

/in , /by

Actor Michelle Trachtenberg, known for her performances in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gossip Girl, Harriet the Spy, and more, has died at the age of 39 in New York this week. 

Police confirmed Trachtenberg’s death to ABC News and the New York Post this week with no cause of death confirmed. Police stated on Wednesday that the New York Medical Examiner was investigating the cause, however, there was no foul play suspected. 

Embed from Getty Images

Trachtenberg had recently undergone a liver transplant, and ABC reported that Trachtenberg’s mother found her in a New York apartment. 

Trachtenberg was a famous actress who got her start in Hollywood as a child. She’s known for many roles, and got her start as a commercial actor before being featured in Nickelodeon’s show The Adventures of Pete & Pete, and the soap opera All My Children. 

Trachtenberg became an iconic figure for children, teens, and adults alike in the early 2000’s and 2010’s, scoring her first lead role in a film in Harriet the Spy, also starring Rosie O’Donnell. 

“There was a lot required of me, I’m extremely grateful for the experience,” Trachtenberg said back in 2021 reflecting on how she began filming her first movie on her 10th birthday. 

One of her most well-known roles was Dawn Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and remained on the show until it ended three years later. 

Co-star Sarah Michelle Gellar honored Trachtenberg on social media on Thursday stating: “Michelle, listen to me. Listen. I love you. I will always love you. The hardest thing in this world, is to live in it. I will be brave. I will live … for you.”

Embed from Getty Images

Her other Buffy co-star James Masters told People Magazine: “My heart is heavy today. We have lost a beautiful soul. Michelle was fiercely intelligent, howlingly funny, and a very talented person. She died much too young, and leaves behind scores of people who knew and loved her.”

David Boreanaz, who played Angel, shared: “So very sad … horrible news. RIP and prayers to her and her family.” 

Alyson Hannigan, who played Willow, posted: “I am deeply saddened by the news of Michelle’s passing. She brought a loving energy to the set of Buffy.”

Kim Cattrell, Trachtenberg’s co-star in the Disney film Ice Princess, posted “Rest in peace Michelle,” along with a photo from the film’s set of the two of them. 

One of Trachtenberg’s most well-known roles was Georgina Sparks on the hit show Gossip Girl. “Georgina is actually my favorite character that I’ve played because she’s such an evil B-I-T-C-H. That was fun,” Trachtenberg said in 2021.

Co-star Blake Lively posted a written memorial to Trachtenberg on Wednesday as well:

“She was electricity. You knew when she entered a room because the vibration changed. Everything she did, she did 200%. She laughed the fullest at someone’s joke, she faced authority head on when she felt something was wrong, she cared deeply about her work, she was proud to be a part of this community and industry as painful as it could be sometimes, she was fiercely loyal to her friends and brave for those she loved, she was big and bold and distinctly herself,” Lively wrote

“The world lost a deeply sensitive and good person in Michelle. May her work and her huge heart be remembered by those who were lucky enough to experience her fire.”

Netflix

With Reboots Being The Latest ‘Thing’ in Television Everyone’s Wondering Whether Gossip Girl Will Live Up To The Hype

/in , /by

Last week saw great excitement across the world as it was announced that there is to be a reboot of the 2000s show Gossip Girl. But if the idea of Serena van der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf back on our screens is something you can’t wait to see you may well be disappointed.

Featuring a ‘new generation of rich and famous prep-school teens’, streaming service HBO Max will be showing all 10, hour-long episodes. And although none of the cast have agreed to appear in the new show so far – although Chace Crawford who played Nate Archibald, has commented that he would ‘absolutely cameo’ in the new season – Kristen Bell has signed up to narrate the show once more.

The original series, based on the young adult novels by author Cicely von Ziegesar, ran for six seasons, taking us on a tour of New York’s elite teenagers thanks to Gossip Girl, the ‘one and only source into the scandalous lives of Manhattan’s elite.’

But why the reboot?

In the last few years there seems to be many shows rebooted with various stages of success. The recent Beverly Hills 90210 reboot – known as BH90210 – brought more confusion than joy and a recent tweet from star Jennie Garth (Kelly Taylor in the original show) suggests a second season has not yet been commissioned.

Embed from Getty Images

This is in stark contrast to Netflix’s Gilmore Girls revival. Named ‘A Year in the Life’ we were treated to four episodes – Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall – showing us how the lives of Lorelai and Rory, and of course Emily, had fared over the missing ten years and resulted in many calls for a second season. Something which has never been confirmed nor denied.

So what makes one reboot a hit and another not?

The difference between BH90210 and Gilmore Girls is undeniably the premise of the show as well as the actors. Whilst BH90210 had some of it’s favorite stars including Jason Priestley and Shannon Doherty in the show – Luke Perry had already decided not to return to the show before sadly passing away earlier this year after suffering a massive stroke – the concept was not particularly clear.

Instead of showing us what had happened since the gang had last been on our screens 19 years earlier, the premise appears to be that the actors all met up at the 30th anniversary fan convention in Las Vegas, prompting them to look at their past relationships once FOX authorizes the reboot.

Gilmore Girls on the other hand clearly picked up where they left off, albeit ten years later. They were fortunate to have the full cast back to play themselves – although sadly not Edward Herrmann who died in 2014, something which was dealt with charmingly in the show. And any actors that couldn’t commit to the full four episodes provided great cameos, including Jared Padalecki, Milo Ventimiglia and Matt Czuchry all appearing as Rory’s past loves.

Embed from Getty Images

What will Gossip Girl be about?

The recent announcement has hinted that there will no longer be a ‘Gossip Girl’ as such due to the idea of adults being controlled by a website based on gossip no longer ‘making a lot of sense’. With this in mind there will be a new set of friends along with a new set of problems to be dealt with in each episode, which will still be narrated (by Bell) to keep it in line with the original show.

E! News spoke with Josh Schwartz, who developed the original series and is back as an Executive Producer alongside Stephanie Savage, and was keen to highlight the differences in today’s society compared to twelve years ago saying “this idea that we are all Gossip Girl now, in our own way, that we are all purveyors of our own social media surveillance state.”

As well as looking at the differences in the lives of the new private school teens Gossip Girl will also be looking at the differences in New York. Since the series started in 2007 New York City has seen a monumental change, not just cosmetically – Times Square saw pedestrian malls being created in 2009 – but legally too – same sex marriage was legalized in 2011.

Social media has also seen a huge change with many of the bigger platforms today only just starting out when the first ever episode of Gossip Girl was released – Facebook went global in 2006 – while Instagram had not even been invented until 2010.

And with mental health issues a concern for teens using these platforms it is hopeful that Gossip Girl will also look into these aspects of being on social media and address them accordingly.

Whatever happens, we know that the show will be a great success – maybe even reaching Gilmore Girls level of success – and we can’t wait to watch it!