Leighton Meester Perplexed by Blair Waldorf Wannabes

By Scarlett Newberry Posted Jan 11th 2011 11:20AM

Leighton Meester has declared her intention to leave 'Gossip Girl' after two more years, but she admits she has grown fond of her character, New York socialite Blair Waldorf, despite having totally dissimilar backgrounds.

"I work on a show every day where I feel literally, maybe .1 percent in common with the character," she tells PopEater. "You have to somehow find common ground; otherwise you hate them. The character I play on 'Gossip Girl' is incredibly manipulative and conniving and, you know, this heightened personality in this weird universe that doesn't even really exist."

Meester says that in spite of all this, she finds Blair's "vulnerable side to be pleasant and fun to portray."

The actress expresses surprise that her 'Gossip' character has spawned a legion of wannabes.

"I don't see why," she says. "It seems like it would be really difficult, even just the clothes, the different bag every day."

Meester also found it hard to relate to the flat-out psychotic character she plays in the upcoming college dorm thriller 'The Roommate,' co-starring Minka Kelly.

"None of her decisions are based on some rational view of anything. ... She's just off the deep end," she says.

Meester admits she went through a few mind-altering days on the set and worried that her friends would be disturbed to see her as an obsessive, dangerous co-ed.

"I really did like the script, and I liked the character and then you get into rehearsals, and you're like 'OK, this is going to be ...' My friends aren't going to like me anymore, you know. It's kind of like the flu; you have it, and eventually it goes away, but it definitely touches you for a bit."