We met the real Charlie Rhodes, are you going to develop that character?
Josh: Absolutely. You see her in Episode 11, you see her in [the wedding] episode as well, andElla Rae Peck will be with us for quite a long time.
Where’s Ivy hiding?
Josh: Actually, that’s a really good question. And there’s an answer in that.
Nate seems to have love on the horizon, what will we see for him?
Josh: I think Nate(Chace Crawford) has had so many problems with his family that when he meets someone else who deals with similar things he’s actually in a position to help them and use what he’s learned in his life to help someone else — as opposed to constantly getting sh*t on. The love on the horizon is a really interesting story for him, I think, and allows him to mature emotionally in a way that this year he’s matured in business.
How does Elizabeth Hurley (Diana Payne) tie into the storyline?
Josh: Elizabeth is coming back, and she’s coming back in a very delicious fashion. It’s almost like a shot in the arm in the last third of the season. When she comes back the Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick) story and the Nate story will converge, with Diana. And Jack Bass (Desmond Harrington) comes back in convergence with that same story.
Will there be another season?
Stephanie: Well, we’re not writing a series finale this year. That’s after so many conversations where people roll their eyes at me and go, “dude, seriously, you have to stop asking if you should be writing the series finale.” We’ve definitely checked in with our bosses to make sure we’re not shooting ourselves in the foot.