Gossip Girl's Chace Crawford is the newest contestant on "Let's Star in the Musical Remake of Footloose." Somewhere, down in hopefully fictional Bomont, Texas, Ren McCormack just broke into a deep, cold sweat.

Crawford takes over the role of Ren from Zac Efron, who pulled out earlier this spring after deciding he was tired of being typecast as a high school student. (What's next then? Starring in the remake of a Traci Lords film?)

Of course, Crawford is best known to '80s fans for ... absolutely nothing. Wait, I take that back. He was born in 1985. So it's totally possible he was conceived as a result of his parents watching the classic 1984 film, starring Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer and John Lithgow. Yeah, that'd be almost paradise.

[AP photo]