Gossip Girl star Leighton Meester is chiming in with her thoughts on the new book in Cecily von Ziegesar‘s series, a standalone sequel about Blair Waldorf.

The 39-year-old actress was at SXSW recently to discuss her new movie Basic co-starring Ashley Park when ScreenRant‘s Ash Crossan asked her about the book, simply titled Blair.

Leighton said she was actually sent an advanced copy and read the first seven chapters.

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“I think it’s cool. I did read some of it,” she said. “They sent it to me in advance just so I could, I don’t know, see what’s going on. So, I read like the first seven chapters, and yeah, I think they’re making it, they’re going to release it as a book.”

According to Deadline‘s original announcement about the novel, it is set 20 years after the original Gossip Girl novels, with Blair now in her 40s.

“Details about the novel are still under wraps, but it’s expected to follow the former NYC socialite as she returns to the Big Apple to climb her way back to the top of Upper East Side food chain,” the outlet shared in February.

It is scheduled to release sometime in the summer of 2027.

Leighton has also addressed a viral exchange that happened between her and Ariana Grande at the 2026 Critics’ Choice Awards.