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Gilmore Girls’ Cast and Creators Reveal 10 Secrets About Netflix’s Reboot — Including Teasers About Rory’s Love Life!

Welcome back to Stars Hollow! Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life stars Lauren Graham (Lorelai), Alexis Bledel (Rory) and Scott Patterson (Luke) joined creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and executive producer Daniel Palladino at the Television Critics Association press tour in Los Angeles on Wednesday, July 27, to tease what’s ahead for one of TV’s most beloved mother-daughter pairs.

Related: PHOTOS: Gilmore Girls Cast: Then and Now

Here are the 10 most memorable tidbits from the panel, including hints at the romantic twists in store for both Rory and her mom, along with Sherman-Palladino’s answer to whether she plans for more seasons to come.

Related: PHOTOS: 15 Best TV Moms!

1. Answers about Rory’s love life are on the way. Bledel, 34, didn’t reveal too much about who Rory is dating these days, although she did say that “all of her ex-boyfriends make an appearance in these chapters in one way or another, and it’s great to work with them. I think everyone’s questions are answered by the end of it, but we can’t answer them today.”

Related: PHOTOS: TV’s 10 Most Shocking Deaths of the 2015–2016 Season

2. The new version is about the changing connection between two women. Graham, 49, pointed out that the upcoming episodes focus on family and “how these bonds take us through all the different stages of our lives.” She added, “It’s not a story about a little girl anymore who’s in high school — it’s a story of a young woman and all the struggles she faces, and the dynamics between these two women. They’ve grown up, but they’re the same.”

3. Stars Hollow has changed a bit. Sherman-Palladino joked that Warner Bros. must have gotten a “deal on brown paint,” because Stars Hollow’s storefronts no longer existed and had been painted over when the team first arrived on the lot to start working. “It was very emotional to not have those sets there as we were writing or talking about it,” the series’ creator said.

Related: PHOTOS: Best TV Couples of All Time

4. What would “A” do? As you may know, the section of the Warners lot that is used for Stars Hollow is also where Pretty Little Liars shoots outdoor scenes of Rosewood. “I remember the day we walked back into Luke’s Diner for the first time — because the Pretty Little Liars are lying in there all the time,” Sherman-Palladino said about seeing the repurposed restaurant set.

5. Are Luke and Lorelai together? Hmm … Graham was cagey about who her character will be dating in the reboot. “She does have a love life,” the actress demurred. “I think not all the questions have been answered.”

Lauren Graham as Lorelai and Alexis Bledel as Rory.
Lauren Graham as Lorelai and Alexis Bledel as Rory.

6. Edward Herrmann’s death affected the show’s focus. Edward Herrmann, who played loving patriarch Richard Gilmore, passed away in 2014, and Graham said that viewers will see Lorelai dealing with the absence of her father. “In the wake of losing Ed, which was and still is a great loss for us personally, it was also a part of our story that we’re telling,” she said. “Through dealing with that, [Lorelai] makes some decisions.”

7. Rory is more than just who she dates. Bledel admitted that she’s a bit surprised there is such fervent interest in which guy Rory ends up with. “I just think it’s kind of interesting that that’s what people are excited about,” the actress said. She pointed out that there is more to Rory’s character to focus on, “like her ambition and her accomplishments.”

8. The cast credits fan response at ATX for the reboot happening. The team expressed their appreciation for the show’s undying popularity, and Patterson thinks that the immense fan turnout for the show’s reunion at ATX Television Festival in June 2015 helped the studio realize that there could be interest in new episodes. “ATX was just a fervor,” Patterson said. “It was a veritable frenzy. It might have lit a fire under people.”

9. Yale got some positive PR. Sherman-Palladino told the crowd that she gets positive feedback from many fans who are inspired by her overachieving character: “I hear a lot of ‘My daughter wanted to go to Yale because of Rory.’”

10. Could there be another year in the life? A reporter asked Sherman-Palladino whether another season could be a possibility, but she didn’t sound ready to think about that prospect just yet. “This is what it is,” she said, referring to the four episodes being the end of the journey for now.

Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life premieres globally on Netflix Friday, November 25, at 12:01 a.m. PT. 

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