Where Are They Now: The “Gilmore Girls” Edition

 

When news broke last month that Netflix had closed a deal with Warner Brothers for a limited-series revival of the hit American comedy Gilmore Girls, fans unsurprisingly erupted in joyous celebration. Created by Amy Sherman-Palladrino, the series, which was set in the storybook Connecticut town of Stars Hollow, chronicled the lives of Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter, Rory, and ran from 2001—2007. A multigenerational drama with a quick wit, enchanting dialogue and an unparalleled amount of eclectic characters, the show quickly won viewers over and earned itself a passionate fan-base. Eight years after the series came to a close, fans are still brokenhearted over the show’s series finale, which sent Rory off into her new life as a journalist and Lorelai finally into the arms of Luke. Instead of giving fans closure, the series finale left many with a craving for more—which is why the news of a four-episode revival caused such a stir.

Personally, I can’t wait to visit Stars Hollow again and find out what my favorite characters have been up to. More than that, though, I’m curious as to what the characters’ real-life counterparts have been doing since the show’s end. So, why don’t you take a trip back to Stars Hollow with me and find out where the actors and actresses who played your favorite characters are now!

Lauren Graham (Lorelai Gilmore)

Before Gilmore Girls, Lauren Graham, who played the fast-talking, coffee-addicted, and all-around endearing Lorelai Gilmore, was already well on her way to becoming a successful actress. She was on Townies with Molly Ringwald, played Liz Gibson on Good Company and Shelly on Caroline in the City, and guest-starred on Third Rock from the Sun, Law and Order, NewsRadio and Family Guy. In addition, she had made her mark on the film industry by acting in a multitude of movies, such as Bad Santa, Lucky 13 and The Pacifer. Since Gilmore Girls, she has been incredibly busy. She scored a lead role on Parenthood as Sarah Braverman, and stayed on that show until it ended; she did a guest spot on the TV show The Odd Couple; and, she has several movies that are in post-production, such as Joshy. She’s also made a name for herself as a writer, publishing her first book Someday, Someday, Maybe: A Novel in 2013, which landed on the New York Times Bestseller list. She’s currently working on adapting that book into a TV series. Additionally, she will be starring in a new show called Kate on Later as the host of a late-night talk show.

Alexis Bledel (Rory Gilmore)

Did you know that Alexis Bledel’s tryout for Rory Gilmore was her first one ever? Since playing the sweet and lovable Rory, Bledel has had quite the prosperous career. While the show was on the air, she scored the role of Winnie Foster in Tuck Everlasting, Becky in Sin City and Lena in both Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants movies. After the show ended, she played Beth Dawes on Mad Men in 2012, and did a seven-episode stint on Us & Them. She recently starred in the movies Jenny’s Wedding and Outliving Emily, which is available on Vimeo.

Melissa McCarthy (Sookie St. James)

Reciting all of Melissa McCarthy’s accomplishments seems a bit unnecessary, since she is literally everywhere right now. She’s on the cover of magazines, has been starring in movies (Bridesmaids, The Heat, Identity Thief, Tammy, St. Vincent, Spy) and has been developing hit sitcoms on television (Mike & Molly), and she’s about to become a ghostbuster (Abby Yates) in the new Ghostbusters remake. She’s also hosted Saturday Night Live three times. Her new comedy The Boss, co-starring Peter Dinklage and Kristen Bell, is slated to come out in 2016, and she’s attached to another comedy called Just Do It that doesn’t yet have a release date. If that isn’t enough, she recently launched her first clothing line, Melissa McCarthy Seven7, which is available in department stores worldwide. Albeit to say, playing Sookie on Gilmore Girls seems to have paid off!

Scott Patterson (Luke Danes)

Did you know that Scott Patterson, aka diner owner Luke on Gilmore Girls, played minor league baseball professionally for seven years before deciding to pursue acting? Lucky for us that he did! Before Gilmore Girls, he landed guest spots on several TV shows, including Seinfeld, Fired Up and Will & Grace. When he auditioned for the role of Luke on Gilmore Girls, he was only supposed to appear in the pilot, but he held out signing on for the role until his character became a series regular. Since Gilmore Girls, Patterson has been involved in a multitude of projects: he played Agent Peter Strahm in two of the Saw movies (I and IV); he played Gary Tolchuck on Aliens in America; he did a brief guest spot as Finn on 90210; and, he played Michael Buchanan on the TV series The Event. He currently has several movies in the pre-production stage, such as The Rogue, Liberty and Sons of Summer.

Keiko Agena (Lane Kim)

Lane’s storyline on Gilmore Girls has always been a sore spot for me. Lane, played by the adorable Keiko Agena, was a free-spirited, independent dreamer who wanted to become a big name in music. Sadly, however, those dreams never came to fruition for Lane. Instead, she had twins and was forced to live with her mother while her husband went on tours with the band that they were in together, basically living out Lane’s dreams. I’ve never been so disappointed by a storyline in my life!

Nevertheless, Keiko Ageno went on to have a pretty successful career. While the show was on the air, she voiced the character Yori on Kim Possible. After the show ended, she landed guest spots on Private Practice, ER, Castle, House M.D., Scandal, Shameless and Twisted. Additionally, she appeared in Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon, did a nine-episode stint on the TV series LearningTown and is slated to appear in a new television comedy called Ex-Best. Not bad, Keiko!

Liza Weil (Paris Geller)

Paris was the character that fans loved to hate on the show. Although she started off as Rory’s nemesis, the two gradually became friends over the course of the series. Liza, Paris’s real-life counterpart, has been very busy since Gilmore Girls ended. She’s guest-starred on several television shows, including CSI, In Plain Sight, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice and Anyone But Me. She did a six-episode stint as the character Amanda Tanner on Scandal and then a six-episode stint as Milly Stone on Bunheads. She’s currently playing Bonnie Winterbottom on the TV show How to Get Away with Murder, and has two movies—The Situation is Liquid and Medicine Men—in the post-production stage, slated for release in 2016.

Kelly Bishop (Emily Gilmore)

Tony Award winning actress Kelly Bishop was already an accomplished actress by the time she took the role of Emily Gilmore, Lorelai’s mother, on Gilmore Girls. She made her television debut in 1956, when she was twelve years old, on the soap opera As the World Turns as the character Grace Wescott Andrews, and has been acting on television, in movies and on Broadway ever since. Some of her television credits include: the original Hawaii Five-O, The Thorns, The Babysitter’s Club, Law and Order, All My Children, My Wildest Dreams, One Life to Live, Law and Order: SVU, Army Wives, Mercy, The Good Wife and Bunheads. She’s also starred in several movies over the years, most notably Six Degrees of Separation, Private Parts, Wonder Boys, Friends With Kids and Dangerous Liasons. Her next movie, Saint Janet, in which she has a starring role, is in post-production, as is her new TV show Flesh and Bone.

Edward Herrmann (Richard Gilmore)

It’s hard to believe that the man who played the head vampire in The Lost Boys is also the man who played the loving and amiable Richard Gilmore on Gilmore Girls, but they are one in the same. Before and after Gilmore Girls, Edward had many roles on television and in the movies, including the shows The Practice, Grey’s Anatomy, Law and Order and Drop Dead Diva, and movies such as My Boyfriend’s Back, The Aviator and I Think I Love My Wife. Sadly, he passed away December 31, 2014 due to brain cancer, but fans can expect to see him in his last project, which has not yet been released: the movie Coach of the Year.

Jared Padalecki (Dean Forrester)

Even though many people grew to dislike Dean on the show, I am and will always be Team Dean. As Rory’s first boyfriend, he indulged in her quirks, built her a car (c’mon, the guy built his girl a car! How can you not love him?) and was so adorable that I ended up paying more attention to him than I did Rory! Since Gilmore Girls, Padalecki has had a very impressive career. While the show was on the air, he scored roles in the movies Cheaper By the Dozen, New York Minute and Flight of the Phoenix. After the show ended, he starred as Wade in House of Wax, Tom in Cry Wolf, Thomas Kinkade in Thomas Kinkade’s Christmas Cottage, starring alongside Peter O’Toole and Marcia Gay Harden, and Clay Miller in Friday the 13^th. In 2005, he was cast as Sam Winchester in the hit sci-fi drama Supernatural, co-starring Jensen Ackles. In addition to appearing in every episode of Supernatural to date, he also provided the voice for Sam Winchester in Supernatural: The Animation. Recently, he launched his Always Keep Fighting campaign to raise awareness about depression, a movement that has garnered a lot of media attention and support. The campaign is currently in its fourth installment, and anyone wishing to take part can visit represent.com/Jared and purchase a variety of unique merchandise. All proceeds are distributed to charitable organizations.

Milo Ventimiglia (Jess Mariano)

Who could forget bad boy Jess Mariano, who became another love interest of Rory’s and constantly clashed heads with Dean? Prior to joining Gilmore Girls, Milo Ventimiglia, who played Jess, was already becoming a well-recognized face in the world of television. He had guest starred on Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Saved by the Bell: The New Class, Opposite Sex, Boston Public, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit and had a recurring role on American Dreams. After leaving Gilmore Girls, he went on to join the cast of The Bedford Diaries, and then landed the role of Peter Petrelli on the hit NBC show Heroes. When Heroes ended in 2010, he claimed roles in Mob City, Chosen, Gotham and The Whispers. He recently did a two-episode stint on the comedy show Con Man and has two movies in post-production: Devil’s Gate and Madtown.

Matt Czuchry (Logan Huntzberger)

Logan was my second favorite of Rory’s boyfriends—after Dean, of course. While Gilmore Girls was on the air, he guest-starred on Veronica Mars and played Willie Loomis in the Dark Shadows TV movie. After Gilmore Girls ended, Czuchry joined the cast of Friday Night Lights. He’s currently starring on The Good Wife as Cary Agos.

Sean Gunn (Kirk Gleason)

Kirk was one of the oddest characters on the show, but also one of the most amusing. Sean Gunn, who made Kirk the quirky character that fans grew to love, went on to join many other projects after Gilmore Girls ended. He played Rooster on the show October Road, Jason O’Brien on H+ and Sebastian on Bunheads. He also appeared in one episode of Glee and Bones. In 2014, he scored the role of Kraglin in the blockbuster Guardians of the Galaxy, and is going to appear more movies slated for release in the next year: Po, Geezer and The Belko Experiment.

Yanic Truesdale (Michel Gerard)

One of the most memorable characters on Gilmore Girls was Michel Gerard, the concierge of first the Independence Inn and then the Dragonfly Inn who loved Celine Dion, shoes and chow puppies. The actor who played him, Yanic Truesdale, went on to have a successful television career, especially in the Canadian market, after the show ended. Before being on Gilmore Girls, he was nominated for a Gemini Award for his role on the Quebecois sitcom Roommates, and starred in another Quebecois French Language series called Majeur et vaccine. After Gilmore Girls ended, he starred in quite a few French-Canadian shows, such as Rumeurs, Mauvais Karma, Mohawk Girls, The Fixer and most recently La theorie de K.O.

Liz Torres (Miss Patty)

Last but not least, we have Miss Patty, the owner of the dance studio in Stars Hollow who was the go-to person for any town news and gossip. Played by the always amazing Liz Torres, Miss Patty was a regular fixture on the show. Before even being on the show, Liz Torres had established herself as a talented actress. Some of her television credits include: City, Quantum Leap, The John Larroquette Show, Over the Top, The Nanny, Caroline in the City, First Monday, American Family, ER and Ugly Betty. After Gilmore Girls ended, she guest starred on Private Practice, American Dad, Desperate Housewives, Scandal and Devious Maids, and also appeared in the movies West of Brooklyn and Expecting Love. Fans can anticipate seeing her in the upcoming comedy Chick Flick.