The CW officially renewed the series for a fifth season on April 26, 2011. On May 19, 2011, with the reveal of The CW's 2011–12 television schedule,
Gossip Girl stayed on Monday night and moved to the 8:00 pm Eastern/7:00 pm Central timeslot as a lead-in to
Hart of Dixie, which is produced by
Gossip Girl's executive producers
Josh Schwartz and
Stephanie Savage. The fifth season premiered on Monday, September 26, 2011. Filming for the season began on July 7, 2011. On August 3, 2011, The CW ordered two additional episodes for the fifth season, which will now total at 24. Executive producer Joshua Safran announced that he would be "pulling out all the stops" to make the 100th episode of the show special, which is expected to air in January. On the date of the season premiere, the show used footage of the New York cityscape that showed the
World Trade Center before the
September 11 attacks. Footage containing the World Trade Center have been omitted by films and TV shows such as
Sex and the City and
The Sopranos to honor individuals who died in the attacks. The network has not responded to criticism regarding the usage of the footage. Despite dwindling ratings, series executives were confident the show will be renewed for a sixth season. Head of
Warner Bros. Television,
Peter Roth was also confident that the show will return, stating, "I can't really say at this point, but I would hope and expect that there would be at least another year—if not years—to come." Later on, executive producer Stephanie Savage hinted that a sixth and final season was likely. "We're not writing a series finale this year," said Savage. She added "I checked in with the bosses to make sure we're not shooting ourselves in the foot" and said the cast contracts run out at the end of the next season so "that feels like probably an organic ending point".
St. Vincent performed "Cruel" and "Cheerleader" from her
Strange Mercy album during the Valentine's Day episode.
Cast Blake Lively,
Leighton Meester,
Penn Badgley,
Chace Crawford, and
Ed Westwick all returned as series regulars.
Kaylee DeFer was upgraded to series regular status, while
Taylor Momsen and
Jessica Szohr exited the show, though they were both invited back as guest stars.
Kelly Rutherford and
Matthew Settle also returned as regulars. On April 6, 2011,
10 Things I Hate About You star
Ethan Peck landed a guest-starring role on the show. Peck made his debut in the fourth season finale and was in talks with producers for a recurring role for the fifth season. Peck would later film his scenes with Lively for the season premiere. French actress and model
Roxane Mesquida was cast as Beatrice, Louis' sister and Blair's nemesis in a recurring role for the fifth season. Actress
Elizabeth Hurley was cast as media mogul Diana Payne and starred in a multi-episode arc, with the character being described as "a sexy, smart, self-made media mogul and an all-around force to be reckoned with." Former
Lost actor
Marc Menard joined the cast in the role of Father Cavalia, a handsome priest from Monaco who will preside over Blair's wedding.
Brian J. Smith, known for his role on
Stargate Universe, had been cast as a love interest for Serena while she is in Los Angeles and would appearing on the show as Max, an aspiring chef.
Connor Paolo, who went on to become a regular on
ABC's
Revenge, did not return to the show as
Eric van der Woodsen stating, "I'm done. You should never go back in life. Only forward." In an interview with
Elle magazine on August 16, 2011, Momsen stated that she had quit the series to focus fully on her music career. Hollywood stuntwoman
Zoë Bell was slated to appear on the show and made her debut in the season premiere.
New York magazine noted the appearance of American novelist
Jay McInerney, who reprised his role as writer Jeremiah Harris.
Aaron Tveit, who previously portrayed Nate's cousin Tripp van der Bilt in the
third season, returned to the show for a multi-episode arc.
Michelle Trachtenberg reprised her role as
Georgina Sparks, who was last seen in the fourth season finale. She made her first appearance during the show's 100th episode. Also returning was
William Baldwin as Serena and Eric's father,
William van der Woodsen, for the season's 17th episode, which aired in February 2012. It was also reported that
Desmond Harrington, who made a cameo appearance in the fall finale, would return as Chuck's uncle, Jack Bass. Also guest starring was
One Life to Lives alum David A. Gregory as a friend of the real Charlie Rhodes (
Ella Rae Peck). Cobra Starship's
Gabe Saporta made a cameo in season 5 finale.
Plot Season five opens in Los Angeles, where a vacationing Chuck and Nate decide to visit Serena, who is working on a film set. Back in New York, Blair learns that planning a royal wedding can be stressful, especially with a baby on the way, and Dan discovers the consequences of writing candidly about his closest friends. Also, the surprise return of cousin Charlie will threaten to destroy the van der Woodsen family. Confused about Chuck's sudden change, Blair is determined to prove his behaviour is an act to win her back. The series' 100th episode focused on Blair's wedding to prince Louis. "I think it's our biggest episode since the pilot", said executive producer Joshua Safran. ==Release==