So, they finally found a replacement for Zac Efron in the Footloose remake. It's Gossip Girl's Chace Crawford, he of the perpetually windswept man-bangs and the bluest eyes on the entire CW network.

A lot of cynics are going to dismiss this switch as an even trade -- one Tiger Beat pinup boy for another. But I'm hoping that when Paramount decided to go with Crawford, it was because they found he has more in common with Efron than just also having ridiculously long eyelashes. Zac Efron may still be a relative newcomer in Hollywood, but he's a bona fide movie star with a solid track record. Chace Crawford still has a long way to go before he can say that. And there's also one other tiny little matter to consider: Can he act?

If you think this question can be answered simply by checking out an episode of Gossip Girl, you'd be mistaken. GG co-creator Josh Schwartz has discovered quite a few talented young actors in his day (The O.C.'s Ben McKenzie and Adam Brody, Chuck's Zachary Levi), but two seasons into the series, Crawford has yet to prove he's earned his spot in that distinguished club. The media likes to refer to him as one of the show's breakout stars, but a quick perusal of any Gossip Girl fan site message board will prove that many fans think his character, Nate Archibald, is one of the show's weakest links.

This isn't entirely Crawford's fault. The show's writers have never done him or Nate any favors. Out of the show's three leading men, Crawford was saddled with the least sympathetic or charismatic character. Nate is written as a brooding, empty-headed pretty boy who coasts through life on his looks and his parents' money. He lacks both the devilry and flamboyance of Ed Westwick's Chuck Bass and the down-to-earth, everyman appeal of Penn Badgley's Dan Humphrey. If the Gossip guys had to compete against each other for fans, American Idol-style, Crawford would be the Danny Gokey to Badgley's Kris Allen and Westwick's Adam Lambert -- appealing enough to make it onto the show, but not likable or original enough to go all the way.

The writers can't be blamed for everything, though. Sure, Nate is a whiny bore. But it's an actor's job to either find a way to rise above their subpar material, or move on and look for a better role. Maybe that's what Crawford thinks he's doing with Footloose. This Variety article claims the remake is going to be a "more mature, edgy version" than the original. I'm not sure what that means (is Chace going to be teaching this sheltered town about more than dancing???), but I wish him luck in achieving it. I also wish him luck in proving he's a star in his own right, and not just a guy on a teen show who kind of looks like Zac Efron. He's going to need it.

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