Teen Drama Links for October 24, 2023

Oct 24, 2023

Gossip. It’s an area I try to stay away from in this newsletter.

But this past week, the teen drama world was rife with gossip.

Gossipy Item #1: Jennie Garth and Tiffani Thiessen Reunite

The “Beverly Hills, 90210” stars and former best friends both attended a dinner hosted by Bethenny Frankel and iHeartRadio. This photo, in which Garth and Thiessen are pictured on opposite ends, is the first time they have been seen together in more than 15 years. Neither has ever revealed the true reason their onetime friendship fractured, though this 2012 interview Thiessen did with Howard Stern has led to years of speculation.

It’s just as unclear why now, after all this time, their frozen relationship my be thawing. Those who follow them both closely (::raises hand::) noticed earlier this month that Garth paid Thiessen a compliment on one of Thiessen’s Instagram posts, the only time (to my knowledge) that either one has ever commented on the other’s social media.

So, what does this all mean? That remains to be seen. I could speculate (there are approximately 93751325642 theories rolling around in my head), but I won’t. All I’ll add is that attendees at Frankel’s dinner also included Elisa Donovan (Ginger, Beverly Hills, 90210) and Denise Richards (Robin, Beverly Hills, 90210 / Denise, BH90210 / Gwen, 90210).

Gossipy Item #2: Sophia Bush Is Reportedly Dating Ashlyn Harris

Multiple outlets, including People, have reported that the “One Tree Hill” star, who is in the midst of a divorce from Grant Hughes, is now dating the former USWNT player. They no doubt have a friendship, as indicated by social media posts they’ve shared and events they’ve been seen at.

Bush has yet to publicly comment on her divorce, so it’s not a surprise she hasn’t commented on her reported new relationship. However, a rep for Hughes for some reason thought it would be appropriate for them to comment on Bush’s dating life. Uh, what? It’s a nice statement, but still.

Gossipy Item #3: Erin Foster Alleges Chad Michael Murray Cheated on Her With Sophia Bush; Hilarie Burton Decides to Get Involved

Foster, who played Heather on “The O.C.,” recently spoke on her podcast with her sister Sara (Jen, 90210) about still being in a relationship with Murray — and allegedly living together — when he began seeing Bush in the early 2000s. The allegation was ironic given that rumors have always circulated claiming Murray cheating on Bush is what led to the demise of their short-lived marriage.

For some reason, Burton thought it was her place to chime in after Foster’s claims went viral. In an Instagram Story that’s no longer available but was captured by media outlets, Burton insisted she and Bush were under the impression that Murray and Foster had been broken up, claiming she knows the “real timeline.” While doing press for her new book, Burton expounded on why she feels the need to come to Bush’s defense. This just screams messy to me. Why are you publicly involving yourself in someone else’s alleged love triangle? Unless you’re one of the three people in the actual triangle, you have no business speaking on it.

And now in that spirit, I will bite my tongue and refrain from saying anything further.

SAG-AFTRA Strike Update

News and notes…

Even though Busy Philipps (Audrey, Dawson’s Creek) has been adamantly pro-strike — and was even picketing yesterday — she posted on Instagram Stories a “Dawson’s Creek” clip and wrote about filming the particular episode, which goes against the strike rules.
Despite the strike, both Jana Kramer (Alex, One Tree Hill) and Trevor Donovan (Teddy, 90210) are promoting their respective holiday movies on social media. (Facebook / Facebook).
- Kramer’s movie co-star, Mary-Margaret Humes (Gail, Dawson’s Creek) posted about their film as well. (Instagram)
  - Perhaps not surprising given that Humes previously broke the strike with this recent “Dawson’s Creek” post.
- I don’t see either film on the list of productions with interim agreements, so I am unsure of the circumstances around each that seemingly allow them to be promoted — perhaps they were not SAG-AFTRA productions, a la “Sullivan’s Crossing.”