Girl Crush: Alexis Bledel
The return of Rory
Over 16 years ago, Alexis Bledel, a teenager who was long on looks but short on experience, was plucked out of obscurity to star in Gilmore Girls. As Rory, the gifted daughter (and best friend) of Lorelai, Bledel became an instant sensation. And her success didn’t stop there: during her run on Gilmore, Bledel brought her baby blues to the big screen, scoring memorable roles in Tuck Everlasting (2002), The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005) and Sin City (2005).
But the sudden cause of her fairy-tale rise ended just as abruptly. After the announced departure of Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino in 2007, a “final” season that was written without her was met with disappointment. Bledel, then in her mid-20s, was cast for the first time into that uncertain purgatory inhabited by out-of-work actors.
But she didn’t disappear. Largely sustained by a Traveling Pants sequel, a string of TV guest spots—including Mad Men, where she met her husband, Vincent Kartheiser—and leading roles in largely forgettable films, Bledel managed to hang around. And then, nearly a decade after Gilmore Girls died, something incredible happened.
Following a huge turnout for a reunion panel at the ATX Television Festival in 2015, Netflix, which was already airing all 100-plus episodes for old and new fans alike, announced a deal to distribute four new 90-minute segments representing the four seasons of the year. At last Gilmore Girls could end the way the show’s creator—who famously declared she knew the finale down to “the final four words”—intended. And with Bledel back in the spotlight and rumors of a Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants reunion swirling as well, it’s safe to say that nostalgia is paying off big for our favorite fast-talking, coffee-swilling Stars Hollow beauty. Oh, and our final four four words? Welcome back, Rory Gilmore!
