Leslie Jones , Bethenny Frankel , Stassi Schroeder , and Hailey Bieber have entered the chat .
What happens when you eschew the politics of female friendship and invite a boyfriend to a girls dinner? Millions found out in the viral TikTok series, “Group Chat.”
The saga starts when a group chat member enters her roommate’s room and urges her to read the latest text in the chat.
Their friend Haley had just sent a message asking if her boyfriend Justin could join their girls dinner. He had “such a rough day,” and she didn’t want to leave him alone.
To no one’s surprise, the girls didn’t want Justin at their dinner and were not happy with the request.
An exchange of polite-seeming, but really passive-aggressive charged texts are exchanged between Haley and another friend Jessica in the group chat.
The drama escalates with mysterious reservation changes and more friends weighing in on the ethics of Justin joining their dinner.
But through the power of numbers, Justin is barred from dinner once and for all!
Haley then dramatically leaves the group chat.
Eventually, Haley rejoins the chat and apologizes, and through her suggestion, the group finds a new restaurant. But the drama is far from over because at the new restaurant — guess who’s there?
That’s right, Justin.
But with another girl!
It turns out, Haley and Justin’s relationship might be a tad bit more complicated than we all thought. The season finale ends with the assumption that Haley might actually be the other woman in Justin’s life and that this whole dinner fiasco was an attempt to catch Justin in the act or to threaten him. Very messy, but a saga, for reals.
The intrigue, the twists and turns, and the relatable portrayal of female friendship dynamics drew in audiences from all corners of the Internet. Brands like Pine-Sol, Betty Crocker, UPS, eBay, Bravo, Bath & Body Works, Crocs, and more (literally all the brands), commented about their investment in the drama.
Comments and thoughts also poured in fromLeslie Jones,Bethenny Frankel, andStassi Schroeder(the formerVanderpump Rulesstar even made herown videoabout how she relates to a particular character) — andHailey Biebercommented that she was “locked in!”
On the immense viral buzz, Sydney toldToday, “I’ve been gaining around 100,000 [followers] every day, steady.”
The series was written a year ago inspired by none other than the chaotic reality TV gold that isJersey Shore: Family Vacation. Specifically, the moment when Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino gets out of jail and hits up the cast’s group chat.
“It revives the entire group. Everyone’s like, waking up, looking at it, and just the very idea of his name popping up on their home screen sent shock waves through the house,“Sydney said. “I was like, ‘That. That feeling.’”
While the inception of the series wasJersey Shore, what resonated with fans was how relatable the portrayal was of female friendship dynamics, especially in a big group.
“It’s so funny the ways in which being a woman is such a universal experience,” she explained. “And I think having a really close group of girlfriends with very different personalities that are bound to clash, but it doesn’t always mean the end of a friendship.”
And as for that Justin? In a series full of twists and turns, we can’t forget the real-life twist that came in the form of singer-songwriter,Charlie Puth, who had supported the series from early on. He ended up voicing a “secret” cameo as none other than Justin.
Sydney had woken up from a nap with a flurry of missed calls from her mom. “She’s calling me like 100 times, and she’s like, ‘Charlie Puth commented on your video,'” she recalled. “And I was like, ‘No, shut up.'” After exchanging a few messages, Sydney asked if Charlie would voice the character of Justin, and to her surprise, he agreed.
Now that Season 1 has wrapped, the question remains: Will the series end just as quickly as it began? Fans can fret not. Sydney revealed she’s already working on a second season. “Just because the dinner segment has ended, doesn’t mean the group chat is done,” she shared.
“Season 2, you can expect anything you can expect from a real friend group, any of the normal drama,“Sydney said. Future storylines are planned for situations like “The Bachelorette” and “The Birthday,” plus a dive into the other characters.
“We are keeping the same characters, but we’re going to change the scenario. And it might not always be [Haley] because everyone has their annoying qualities,” said Sydney.
And with the success of the series, when asked if Sydney had other dream cameos in mind, she shared, “Pedro PascalfromThe Last of Us.” And then, perhaps, an addition to the friend group. “Alex Cooper fromCall Her Daddy,” Sydney added, could be fun as a cameo as one of the girlfriends in the group chat.
This casting! Someone get their agents on the line!
Were you locked into the saga? If not, you can catch the first installment of the serieshere.
