Leighton Meester and Penn Badgley say their Gossip Girl sex scenes were "messed up"

20 May 2022, 13:12

Penn Badgley reacts to fans wanting to date Joe from You

By Sam Prance

Leighton Meester and Penn Badgley said it was unfair that teenagers watched them play teens having sex when they were in their 20s.

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Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester has opened up about Blair's sex scenes and how they were unfair to teenage fans watching.

As soon as Gossip Girl debuted in 2007, the TV series immediately made headlines thanks to its wild sex scenes. The show actually used these moments alongside negative reviews to advertise it. One of the series' most famous posters was a still from a Serena and Nate sex scene with the caption: "Every parent's nightmare," from an actual Boston Herald review.

The characters in the show were as young as 15 but the cast were in their 20s in real life. Now, Leighton Meester (Blair) and Penn Badgley (Dan) have discussed their sex scenes and lingerie scenes in Gossip Girl and said that it was "messed up".

Leighton Meester and Penn Badgley say their Gossip Girl sex scenes were "messed up". Picture: K Mazur/TCA 2008/WireImage, The CW

Speaking about their scenes on Penn's brand new Podcrushed podcast, Leighton said: "I’m 20 years old at the time, doing scenes of not just, like, having like sex or like, you know, sexual–like, fantasy stuff. And then like, in a bed with someone or whatever. We were 20. So whoever was looking at it, certainly girls that were actually 16, I was playing a 16-year-old."

Leighton continued to explain: "They’re watching it thinking that is what a 16-year-old looks like. Right now, I’m watching a 16-year-old have sex and watching a 16-year-old in lingerie and their body... but actually, it’s not a 16-year-old. It’s a 20-year-old, but my brain is being told that it’s a 16-year-old. So that like kind of messes with you, too."

Agreeing, Penn said: "To me, this is what I mean. It’s like if we actually put 15 and 16-year-olds in these teen shows and movies that we make, we’d all be like, what the–? You know, it wouldn’t be funny, wouldn’t be sexy. But then we put in people who look like us. And you know, we have to like shave twice a day already."

Penn ended by saying: "And you know, it’s just not fair to anybody. Yeah, you know, it’s just… it’s not. Yeah! Yes."

via GIPHY

One of Penn's Podcrushed co-hosts, Sophie Ansari, then says: "It is messed up to know that the people who 13-year-olds are idolising are actually 20," and Leighton and Penn both agree by saying, "Yes," in unison.

Leighton adds: "And walking into bars ordering dirty martinis and not having any issues with that. Being like: ‘It’s my 15th birthday. No question from these people at all."

Of course, Gossip Girl is now just one of many teen shows where actors in their 20s play teens having sex. What do you think? Is it harmful?