Gilmore Girls might have been about Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, but the residents of Stars Hollow gave the show much of its pizazz. Lane Kim, Rory’s best friend, quickly became a series favorite. Her rebellious personality, her ability to get away with anything, and her desire to break free from her mother’s restrictive rules, had fans rooting for her. Then, Suddenly, in season 7, her storyline fell flat. Fans were further demoralized when nothing much had changed for Lane in the Netflix revival, Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. Keiko Agena, the actor who played Lane, felt that way, too.
For seven-seasons, Agena was a believable teenager and early 20-something, but the actor behind the famed character was much older. Agena, born in 1973, was already 27 when she took on the role. Her character, Lane, was 16 when the series began in 2000. Agena was closer in age to Lauren Graham, who portrayed Lorelai, than Alexis Bledel, who played her best friend, Rory. Graham was 33 when the series started. Bledel was just 19 when fans first met her in Gilmore Girls.
Agena noted that there was nothing particularly strange about playing a younger character. She almost expected to play younger characters, anyway. She explained to Entertainment Tonight that she looked young and was a bit of a late bloomer, anyway. Lane grew up on-screen, and Agena sort of did in away, too. She said playing the part gave her a chance to mature a bit.
While Agena never had a problem with playing the much younger Lane, she certainly has feelings about how her storyline unfolded. She told Entertainment Tonight that she had hoped for more for Lane than what writers gave the character. In fact, she said she still hopes that Stars Hollow was just a pit stop for the rebellious young adult.
When fans reconnected with Lane in Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, she lived in Stars Hollow. She was still married to Zach and raising her twins. In fact, fans were sad to see Lane morph into her mother. Sure, Mrs. Kim, played by Emily Kuroda, was a great character, but Lane wasn’t supposed to be anything like her.
Agena wants to see more from her character if Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life 2 ever actually happens. She isn’t alone in that sentiment. Fans of the original series were largely disappointed in Lane’s storyline in the initial Netflix reboot. If a second revival season does happen, they have a few ideas for storylines that are more befitting of the rebellious character they grew to know and love.
Reddit users would love to see Lane own amusic shop since her dreams of music stardom seem unlikely to happen. They point out that she could buy the shop from Sophie Bloom in a moment that would very much feel like the passing of the torch. Other fans would like Lane to rebel completely and leave Stars Hollow for life in Manhattan.