Every autumn, a fast-talking mother-daughter duo, their charming town and its quirky residents re-emerge on our screens, signifying the arrival of the fall season (as social media users put it, they’ve finished “defrosting”).
Gilmore Girls, the hit dramedy series, which aired on The WB and CW from 2000 to 2007, experiences a resurgence across streaming services and social media each September. Fans rewatch all seven seasons as part of their autumn ritual, immersing themselves in the show’s familiar comfort and cozy New England setting, which often depicts an idyllic autumn.
With each Gilmore Girls rewatch, viewers are transported to a friendly and picturesque place that, despite being fictional, evokes a sense of “home.” Tapping into a collective nostalgia, the series remains a trending comfort show year after year, even for viewers who weren’t born until after the show aired its final episode.
This month, the Emmy’s celebrated Gilmore Girls’ upcoming 25th anniversary by inviting actresses Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel – who play mom Lorelei Gilmore and daughter Rory Gilmore, respectively – to appear on stage in a makeshift set of their characters’ Stars Hollow, Connecticut home.
The reunion, which followed the announcement of an upcoming documentary, playfully addressed its “autumnal dominance.” Graham joked, “25 years ago, a show called ‘Gilmore Girls’ premiered and apparently took the season of fall hostage.”
While streaming services have certainly made it easy to rewatch Gilmore Girls on a loop, they aren’t the sole reason why the show has remained as popular and adored as ever. Like a delicious cup of coffee enjoyed at Luke’s Diner, the enduring appeal of Gilmore Girls is rooted in familiarity, comfort, and a sense of community.
Add to that the show’s streaming revivals, autumnal identity, consistent fan engagement and more, Gilmore Girls has proven to be a masterclass in branding and longevity.
Here are seven key takeaways to staying culturally relevant à la Gilmore Girls:
Home Is Where the Heart Is: Satisfy a Craving for Comfort and Consistency
Audiences continue to be drawn to Gilmore Girls for its emphasis on home, family and community – things all human beings crave, particularly when they’re nostalgic and seeking comfort and consistency. Since its pilot episode, Gilmore Girls has been rooted in the people and places that make a home.
“It has that heart that touches people,” said Brenda Maben, the show’s costume designer, in an article for The New York Times. “It’s just small-town love…and that’s why I think people like it. It makes them feel safe and warm and cozy. It just brings up good feelings.”
They say, “You can’t go home again,” but with Gilmore Girls, that remains untrue for fans who appreciate the show’s predictability. As more people seek familiarity, Gilmore Girls feels like a warm, tried-and-true blanket on a chilly day, and a place that’s always there when you need it. That innate human desire for comfort is timeless.
The Talk of the Town: Relationships and Dialogue Reign Supreme
Part of Gilmore Girls’ enduring appeal is its ability to tap into nostalgia, taking viewers back to a simpler time that was rich with genuine connections and devoid of smart phones and social media apps. Many viewers, particularly those who watched the show as it aired on TV, crave the strong, authentic relationships and deep connections of the Gilmore Girls era. The show is essentially frozen in a time when in-person conversations reigned supreme.
Relationships are at the core of Gilmore Girls, and conversations take place everywhere, from porches, couches and dining tables to diners, classrooms and town hall meetings. The show’s humorous and banter-rich dialogue comes to life through its chatty and quick-witted characters, written by Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino.
Whether it’s Lorelei and Rory, their eclectic fellow townspeople, or Rory’s posh and hard-to-impress grandparents, the people of Gilmore Girls are seamlessly and enthusiastically integrated into each other’s daily lives, depicting a tight-knit circle that’s always there to have a chat.
Aspirational Autumn: Build Brand Identity Through Time and Place
Gilmore Girls has become synonymous with fall (what better time is there to visit Connecticut?). If you need any proof, just scroll through social media on the days leading up to the season. You won’t just see autumnal scenes from the series; the show’s theme music, along with patriarch character Richard Gilmore’s famous “I am an autumn” sound bite, surge in use across TikTok and Instagram Reels on the first day of fall – a celebratory marker that it’s time for that seasonal Gilmore Girls rewatch.
While we follow the characters of Gilmore Girls through multiple seasons of life, autumn reflects the coziness at the heart of Gilmore Girls while highlighting a cornerstone of the show: community. Through festivals, traditions, holiday gatherings and picturesque, foliage-rich walks around town, Gilmore Girls transports audiences to a time and place that’s brimming with beauty and joy. In fact, every year, Gilmore Girls inspires fall travel to various northeastern towns reminiscent of Stars Hollow. In turn, some of these towns have leveraged the show’s popularity to boost tourism.
By going all-in on its dreamy, autumn-in-New England backdrop, Gilmore Girls has established an aspirational and dependable identity that keeps the show timely and exciting, year after year.
Immersive Experiences and Merchandise: Bring the Dream to Life
For years, social media users have posted about their desire to live in a town like Stars Hollow or open a Bed & Breakfast similar to Lorelei’s “Dragonfly Inn.” Gilmore Girls listened: if fans wanted to live in Stars Hollow, the show would bring Stars Hollow to them.
Through partnerships with brands like Hallmark and Vera Bradley, Gilmore Girls has launched lifestyle products, ranging from clothing, coffee mugs and cookbooks to advent calendars, aprons, home décor and more, expanding the Gilmore universe. Most notably, Scott Patterson, who plays the show’s grumpy yet big-hearted Luke Danes, often visits the Luke’s Diner set at the Warner Brothers Studio lot in California. True to his character, Patterson launched a line of coffee featuring a “Luke’s Diner” blend.
Through merchandise, fan conventions and immersive experiences (all of which continue to garner social media coverage) Gilmore Girls has maintained relevancy on- and off-screen, inviting fans to bring the magic of Stars Hollow to life.
Revivals and Reunions: Generate Excitement and Build Legacy Through Milestones
Despite ending nearly twenty years ago, Gilmore Girls has continued to generate excitement over the past decade. First, with its 2016 revival, ‘A Year in the Life,’ which took place nearly a decade after the series wrapped. That was then followed by various on-stage reunions and the upcoming 25th anniversary documentary, which has sparked global anticipation. The documentary is set to reunite the majority of the show’s original cast, some of whom will attend live events in celebration of its quarter-century milestone.
The continuous Gilmore Girls reunions don’t just speak to the love for the show; they also speak to the behind-the-scenes bonds between the show’s cast and crew. Many of the actors have remained friends, reinforcing the warmth and community at the show’s core. This has fed the soul of the fandom: when audiences recognize that the people behind a “brand” (or, in this case, show) are genuinely invested in each other and their audience, they’ll feel a deeper connection to it.
By celebrating milestones and fostering long-term relationships, Gilmore Girls has solidified its reputation as a treasured institution in the entertainment space.
The Cultural Crossover: Tap into Trending Topics and Seasonal LTOs
Across TikTok and Instagram, influencers, everyday users and brands alike have been leveraging trending cultural topics and seasonal LTOs (limited time offers) to increase their engagement and reach. We call this “the cultural crossover.”
The social media buzz is ironic as The New York Times stated that Gilmore Girls, “…which concluded the month before the iPhone was introduced, is even finding a younger audience on TikTok, where users post scenes they love and argue about their favorite romantic partners for every character.”
A timely example: this past season, Amazon Prime’s hit series ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ had social media in a frenzy over its protagonist’s two male love interests. Gilmore Girls was immediately brought into the conversation, as fans drew parallels between them and Rory Gilmore’s boyfriends. Likewise, when Taylor Swift announced her upcoming album, ‘The Life of a Showgirl,’ Gilmore Girls fans labeled Miss Patty, the theatrical dance instructor on Gilmore Girls, as an iconic “showgirl.”
As for the first day of fall, the vast majority of TikToks and Reels showcased the autumnal ritual of ordering everyone’s favorite seasonal LTO – the pumpkin spice latte – and embarking on an annual Gilmore Girls rewatch. When it comes to welcoming fall, Gilmore Girls and the PSL are essentially non-negotiables.
Think Outside Your Medium: Expand Reach through Multimedia
Gilmore Girls’ home base may be on the silver screen, but the iconic show has expanded its reach through various mediums (and we don’t just mean social media).
Take print media, for example. Kelly Bishop, who plays matriarch Emily Gilmore, published her memoir, The Third Gilmore Girl, last fall. During a New York City stop along her book tour, fans erupted in cheer when Bishop’s surprise moderator turned out to be Lauren Graham, her on-screen daughter. Back in 2016, Graham published a memoir of her own, Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls.
Furthermore, several Gilmore Girls actors, as well as show writer Amy Sherman-Palladino, have been interviewed about the show on podcasts, radio shows and TV morning shows.
For fans, the stories told on different outlets offer a unique opportunity to experience the series in a different light. As for those who never watched an episode, well… they likely haven’t been able to escape the chatter that is so quintessentially ‘Gilmore Girls.’
When brands understand how to establish their identity, maintain relevancy and build longevity, one thing is clear:
Where they lead, audiences will follow.