Some characters wear designer suits. Chace Crawford got trapped in one. As Nate Archibald in Gossip Girl, he had it all: flawless cheekbones, tangled love triangles, and the kind of slow-motion hair flips that could crash Tumblr. But while Manhattan’s elite lived in penthouses, one actor quietly entered a different kind of prison. Fame came easily. Freedom? Not so much. What followed was not scripted, but it was definitely dramatic.

While the internet swooned over Nate Archibald, Chace Crawford was stuck playing the CW’s favorite aesthetic: hot, haunted, and hired for his hair.

It was not all champagne and chiseled jawlines, even with Blake Lively lighting up the screen alongside him. In a revealing chat on the Good Guys podcast, Chace Crawford explained how playing Nate Archibald locked him in a career cage. “I was in the wilderness for years,” he admitted, recalling the post-Gossip Girl haze. “I’m in this jail of the CW pretty boy who has no range.” Hollywood’s love for labels meant that while viewers adored the show, casting directors refused to see him as anything beyond the swoony stereotype he embodied.

Nate dated Serena and Blair, but his character’s heartthrob status became a curse in disguise. Chace Crawford acknowledged the breakout that Gossip Girl gave him, but said the after-effects were creatively suffocating. “Coming off of it as a still young guy, [I felt like], ‘Oh, that’s not cool anymore,’” he said. For someone trying to stretch his wings, the industry’s tunnel vision was frustrating. Nate’s charm worked wonders on the Upper East Side, but offscreen, it boxed Crawford into a corner of his own.

Blake Lively’s Net Worth: How Much Is the ‘Gossip Girl’ Starlet’s Worth in 2025?

While Nate Archibald cruised through scandal and champagne, Chace Crawford was left juggling pilot rejections and fading flashbulbs, trying to reboot a career stuck on pause.

Between pilot seasons and passion projects that fizzled, Chace Crawford’s post-Gossip Girl chapter was full of career uncertainty. He shared on the Good Guys podcast that after several "false starts," discovering the right path forward was a real challenge. Fame came quickly, but gaining perspective and direction took much longer. While the world remained captivated by Nate Archibald, Crawford quietly worked behind the scenes, determined to redefine himself and build a lasting career beyond the CW spotlight.

Now, Chace Crawford has swapped prep school charm for aquatic absurdity as The Deep in Amazon’s hit series The Boys. “I was so happy to have another job that I was excited about and that the character was so different,” he shared. The Amazon series gave him range and redemption, a twisted superhero satire that finally let him ditch the CW polish for something darker, weirder, and wildly fun.

'The Boys' Creator Gives a Major Hint at Season 5 Approach, as the Superhero Show Inches Closer to an End

What are your thoughts on Chace Crawford breaking out of his typecast jail? Let us know in the comments below.