A Look Back at Michelle Trachtenberg’s Relationship With ‘Gossip Girl’ Cast

Michelle Trachtenberg captivated audiences from the moment she transformed into Georgina Sparks on Gossip Girl — and her connection to the series continued until her death in February 2025.

Trachtenberg played villainous Georgina on Gossip Girl from 2008 to 2012, making her first appearance in the second half of season 1. She was the mysterious frenemy of Serena Van der Woodsen (Blake Lively), who was always down for revenge. Throughout her appearances over the years, Georgina claimed that her baby was Dan Humphry’s (Penn Badgley) child, and she nearly ruined Blair Waldorf’s (Leighton Meester) life when she released a tape of Blair professing her love for Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) when Blair was supposed to marry someone else.

Despite wreaking havoc on screen, Trachtenberg had friendships with many of her Gossip Girl costars before her untimely death in February 2025. Us Weekly confirmed that the actress was found dead in her New York City apartment at the age of 39. (The cause of death has not been released.)

Scroll down to take a look back at Trachtenberg’s history with the Gossip Girl universe and cast:

In on the Secret?

Throughout her time on Gossip Girl, Trachtenberg played coy about whether her character was the scribe behind the Upper East Side gossip blog. During the 100th episode of the show, which aired in 2012, Trachtenberg’s Georgina was supposedly revealed as Gossip Girl.

“I knew about the last scene in November, a few days before we were filming it,” Trachtenberg exclusively told Us at the time. (During the cliffhanger, Georgina ruined Blair Waldorf’s royal wedding by exposing her love for Chuck Bass in a taped video confession. She was then seen typing away at the Gossip Girl blog, which had been out of commission for several months.)

“I was very shocked with the cliffhanger,” she said. “I knew the 100th episode would end with a bang, but definitely didn’t expect that!”

Trachtenberg teased that her costars Meester, Lively, Badgley and Westwick were not privies to the information before it aired.  “On the ‘big secret episodes,’ only the people involved in the last scene get the script pages,” she told Us. “I was the only one in the scene!”

It was later revealed that Georgina briefly stole power from the blogger, but fans learned in the series finale that it was run by Dan Humphrey.

Oscar-Worthy

Trachtenberg’s bond with her costars was strong three years after the series ended. She joined Kelly Rutherford (who played Lily Van Der Woodsen), Jessica Szohr (who played Vanessa Abrams) and Chace Crawford (who played Nate Archibald) for a post-Oscars party in February 2015.

“So happy to see these beautiful people (inside and out) last night,” Rutherford captioned the Instagram post. “Chase, Michelle and Jessica #GG #PostOscars ❤️.”

Shutting Down Rumors

Trachtenberg shut down rumors in 2017 that lead actresses Lively and Meester were at odds during the show’s tenure. “It’s funny because when we were filming, there was, ‘Leighton hates Blake, Blake hates Leighton, everyone hates Blake, everyone hates Leighton, everyone hates Chace,’ and blah, blah, blah,’” Trachtenberg recalled to Vanity Fair. “It really wasn’t. We were all chill. It was cool.”

Hanging in the City

Crawford and Trachtenberg were all smiles during a February 2019 outing. “Oh how I adore this man #nightbefore party … spotted xoxo 💋,” Trachtenberg wrote via Instagram, giving a nod to their time on Gossip Girl.

Bachelorette Reunions

While Trachtenberg and Meester’s characters were rivals on The CW series, outside the show, they were friends. The twosome proved that in March 2019 when they reunited at a mutual friend’s bachelorette party.

“Spotted. Ms. Waldorf and Ms. Sparks. In the ballroom. With secrets. I’ll never tell. Xoxo 💋,” Trachtenberg wrote via Instagram, sharing a photo of the pair dressed in costume.

She also shared a photo via her Instagram Story, showing off the ladies’ gloves for the occasion. “Ms. Peacock in the dining room with the knife,” she captioned the post, hinting that the event was a murder mystery party like Clue.

Singing Their Praises

Trachtenberg gushed about her Gossip Girl family in February 2020, exclusively telling Us, “Leighton and I actually had dinner not too long ago, and she’s also a mother.” She revealed, “I think it’s just amazing what they’ve all accomplished.”

The actress confessed she hadn’t watched former costar Badgley’s hit TV show You, but she was aware there was a Georgina-centric meme about the Netflix series. “[It] says that I would be the one to take him down, and I was like, ‘I don’t know what this means,’” Trachtenberg said with a laugh. “And then my friends were like, ‘Well…’ I go to all of my friends for the content to understand what’s cool with the kids these days.”

‘Gossip Girl’ Comeback

Trachtenberg reprised her role as Georgina Sparks during season 2 of the rebooted Gossip Girl on Max. During the December 2022 episode, Georgina held the modern-day Gossip Girl, Kate Keller, (Tavi Gevinson) hostage in Dan and Serena’s apartment.

Showrunner Joshua Safran revealed that it was always part of the plan to get Trachtenberg back on screen. “I always knew I wanted Michelle to come back, and Michelle and I stayed in touch over the years,” Safran told Popsugar in December 2022. “When season 1 was announced, she’s like, ‘OK, when am I coming?’ I was like, ‘OK, you’re coming, but I want the table to be fully set and loaded so you can pull the tablecloth out and destroy everything.’”

Safran continued, “We waited until season 2 so by the time she arrives, everybody is at the highest place for themselves to fall, and all she cares about is anarchy and destroying people she doesn’t even know. That’s a game to her, so the idea that she can destroy everybody is where we find her, and I think it’s a lot of fun to watch.”

Bonding With the Next Generation

“She’s an icon,” Zión Moreno, who played Luna La on the reboot, said of Trachtenberg’s Georgina in December 2022. “I loved her in the OG series, and it was an honor to get to work with her.”

Moreno told Popsugar, “She’s a hoot for sure, and there’s never a dull moment around her. It was a little nerve-racking because you want to make her proud, but she was just really, really nice and wonderful.”

Savannah Lee Smith, who played Monet de Haan, told the outlet she wanted more scenes with Trachtenberg. “I didn’t get to have as many scenes as I wished with her, but I had one good one where it was all of us together,” she recalled. “She’s just a really fun person to be around on set. It was a little intimidating, [but] I think we did OK.”

Staying Quiet on Blake Lively Drama

Trachtenberg posted a cryptic Instagram message in January 2025 amid Lively and Justin Baldoni’s ongoing legal battle over alleged sexual misconduct on the set of It End With Us. “It takes a lot of strength to see through all the bulls—. And some dark sunglasses,” Trachtenberg captioned a photo of herself in dark sunglasses.

After seeing the post, a fan asked Trachtenberg to “release a statement on the Blake drama” and asked, “Idk if this is a direct statement?”

She then replied, “Gosh. I’m busy worrying about real world news and families who have no home anymore from the LA fires. But you do you.”

Trachtenberg’s comment referred to the wildfires that took over Los Angeles in January 2025 and left thousands displaced. Her remark also appeared to be a slight dig about the issues between Lively and Baldoni, who have filed lawsuits against each other for their alleged actions on their movie set. (The two are set to go to trial later this year.)

In Loving Memory

“So sad to hear of the passing of @michelletrachtenberg. Sending prayers,” Westwick wrote via his Instagram Story in February 2025, paying tribute to his former costar.