Lauren Graham, left, and Alexis Bledel in “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.” (Saeed Adyani/Netflix)
Were you enraged by the famous “last four words” during Netflix’s “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life?” You’re not alone!
Star Lauren Graham recently indicated in her memoir that she was also confused by the decision to end the series on a huge cliffhanger — which, spoiler alert, was the reveal of Rory’s pregnancy. Perhaps anticipating that fans would also be stunned (and upset) to hear Rory say “I’m pregnant” as the show abruptly ends, creator Amy Sherman-Palladino sat down for a series of interviews this week about why she made that decision.
[The ‘Gilmore Girls’ final four words: Did you hate or love them?]
First, Sherman-Palladino confirmed to TVLine that she was always going to have the series end with Rory getting pregnant; even if she had written the original series finale (Sherman-Palladino left before the seventh and final season) when Rory had just graduated college. She calls it a fitting ending in a “life repeats itself” kind of way, given that Rory’s mother, Lorelai, was also a single mother.
“She’s the same age Lorelai was when the show started. It really does feel a little Lion King-y, the whole circle of life,” she added to the Hollywood Reporter.
Sherman-Palladino also likes the idea of leaving fans dangling about what happens to Rory next. “The thing about these women is their lives keep going. And keep changing. I like that we end with Emily being calm and settled. Lorelai, for the moment, is calm and settled. And Rory is, ‘Holy s–t. What the f–k?’ ” Sherman-Palladino said. “That’s more real than if all three of them had lovely endings and we tied it up with a bow and everyone went home with a unicorn.”
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Sherman-Palladino echoed the same ideas in an interview with BuzzFeed, particularly regarding Rory’s personal life and career tailspin in the revival: “Your life should not have a bow on it at 32. Your life should be a wide-open field at 32 years old,” she said. She indicated that Rory doesn’t necessarily have to keep the baby.
She’s also cagey about whether there will be more “Gilmore Girls” episodes, though her husband, executive producer Dan Palladino, tells Vulture, “Never say never.” Sherman-Palladino reiterates the fact that regardless of whether the series continues, “We’ve always tried to not wrap things up in a bow. We tried to do that on the series. Because life isn’t like that.”
Oh, and yes, they know who the father is. But they’re not telling you.
“It really wasn’t about the father; it was about the event,” Sherman-Palladino told THR. “People can make their own conclusions about who the father is, there’s not a thousand choices out there, but it really wasn’t about the boy because, quite frankly, one of the things that’s always been a little weird is how obsessed with Rory’s love life everybody got when the point of the show was never about their love lives.”
Read more:
‘Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life': 10 questions we still have after the revival
‘Gilmore Girls’ on Netflix: A refresher (and rating) on each season
REVIEW | The ‘Gilmore Girls’ revival is far from perfect. Luckily for Netflix, fans won’t care.
Forget Team Logan, Team Dean or Team Jess. What about Team Rory?
As a teen, I saw myself in Rory. Now, I strive to be like Lorelai.
How the ‘Gilmore Girls’ revival resolved Rory’s love life and career
Lorelai Gilmore’s hiking adventure was out of character for many reasons
