Major spoilers for the very end of Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life ahead.
By now you’ve likely finished Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life (or jumped ahead to the end, for shame), sat in a deep, dark silence, felt an existential crisis coming on, and are now seeking out solace in a safe space. Well, friends, you’ve come to the right place. As we all begin to wrap our heads around the fact that the revival ends with Rory announcing to Lorelai that she’s pregnant, there are many questions and not nearly enough answers. Like, for starters, who the hell is the dad? This might seem like an easily solvable query to the #TeamLogans in the crowd, but Amy Sherman-Palladino’s last four words provided not a shred of context or detail. It’s possible, then, that Rory Gilmore might be a prime candidate for the next episode of Maury. Below, we speculate wildly about Rory’s baby’s paternity. Here are all our theories so far, ranked from most to least plausible — but also, ranked from least to most likely to elicit some serious side-eye from Emily Gilmore. (For more on how the season wrapped up all the major characters’ storylines, read my colleague Jen Chaney’s breakdown here.)
Logan Huntzberger
Well, at least we know this baby will have a nice fat trust fund in his or her name someday. In all seriousness, Logan appears to be the only one Rory’s slept with the most (and most frequently) in the revival, making Logan our No. 1 pick for baby daddy. Logan and Rory have always been reckless when they’re together, so it’s not a stretch to think they’re not using protection — oh, that poor woman engaged to Logan — and, frankly, probably wouldn’t mind having a child together either. Though such news would likely give Logan’s dad Mitchum an aneurysm — all the more reason! They’re both in their early 30s, Logan’s loaded, and Rory has always fit easily into his world (they essentially share it). Just think of how painfully fun it’ll be to watch them fail miserably at co-parenting in the inevitable sequel.
Surrogacy
We learn in the revival that one of Rory’s best friends, Paris Geller, is the head of a fancy and successful fertility and surrogacy clinic. We also learn that Luke and Lorelai have been looking into having a child together through surrogacy, though Luke initially turned the idea down (mostly because he’s confused about the mechanics of it all). But the most important fact we learn: Rory needs money. She spends huge chunks of the revival complaining about how penniless she is and you know what pays well? Being a surrogate for Paris Geller’s company. At some point, the thought had to have crossed Rory’s mind and, if not, you know Paris forced it. It’s not crazy to imagine Rory would consider surrogacy for a few reasons, some more implausible than others: (1) She’s doing it for Luke and Lorelai as a surprise, having already explained how it works to Luke and changed his mind (though, admittedly, the whole mom-sister thing is a tough sell); (2) she’s doing it for the money; or (3) she’s doing it for a story. Look, Rory’s only three chapters into her book and who knows when she’ll ever see a paycheck from it (or anything). Perhaps thinking long term, or having made a decision predating the book, she’s decided to do a bit of gonzo journalism and be the subject of a piece on surrogacy. Hey, no one’s ever said Rory’s the greatest journalist!
Wookie
Toward the end, of “Spring,” Rory has a one-night stand. Her first! And it’s with, of all things, a guy she met while out on assignment in New York City covering people who wait in lines and who was dressed as a Wookie. Day drinking was involved, you know the drill. Rory seems surprised and immediately regretful about the whole situation, so maybe she headed to the nearest Duane Reade and got Plan B, or, hopefully, used other forms of protection. If not, well, their family cosplay game is gonna be strong. The one drawback to this theory is timing: She sleeps with the Wookie sometime in spring (toward the end of the episode, though that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the end of spring) and she announces her pregnancy in fall. The leaves are still turning, the pumpkins are out in Stars Hollow, so we have to assume it’s early fall. But we don’t know how long she’s been keeping this news a secret. So who’s to say when, exactly, she got pregnant. It’s complicated!
Paul
Oh, what’s his name. You know, Rory’s boyfriend? Yeah, this is a long shot given Rory barely remembers his existence, but that doesn’t entirely rule out the possibility that Paul’s the father. Rory may have been ignoring him in all areas but the bedroom! Still, the last (and all) we saw of the guy was in “Winter,” though they were together the whole time. (He literally breaks up with her via text seconds before Rory announces her pregnancy to Lorelai.) Paul didn’t know Rory was sleeping with Logan behind his back; maybe Rory was also continuing to sleep with Paul behind Logan’s back?
Jess
But what if Logan wasn’t the only ex Rory’s been secretly sleeping with …
