It’s about staying relevant to teens today.
In other words, it really is about keeping up with the youths.
And I think the hardest thing is to ensure that you’re being truthful."
Leighton Meester and Blake Lively on ‘Gossip Girl’; Ian Somerhalder on ‘The Vampire Diaries’.The CW; Bob Mahoney/The CW
Some shows accomplish that by adding younger voices to their writers' room.
Others rely on actors to help them stay hip.
(Helpful tip: Kids no longer say “hip.")
“A lot of times I’ll ask the cast.
If I write something I’m like, ‘Would you say this?’
Then they’ll be like, ‘No.’
And I’m like, ‘Great.
Okay, well, how would you say it?'”
Yep, we’re talking about high school graduation.
“The other hardest part about writing a teen show is college,” says Schwartz.
“InGossip Girlwe decided to blow through college,” says executive producer Stephanie Savage.
It’s just so tricky.”
But those challenges staying relevant and dealing with college are pretty timeless.
Shows have dealt with them for years, and they’ll continue to deal with them in the future.
“Gothic romance and bodice-ripping romance doesn’t really have a place in today’s society.
The entire bad boy trope is kind of a toxic trope.”
(Don’t worry, we’d bet the leather jacket won’t be going anywhere.)
Although, maybe a little reevaluation is a good thing in terms of keeping the genre fresh.
And yet, we’re still eager for more.
Read more fromI Want My Teen TV, EW’s summerlong celebration of teen shows past and present.
