Penn Badgley: "I Know Everyone Hates" My Bushy Beard

USMagazine, Wednesday, June 20, 2012, 10:40am (PDT)

Fear not, Gossip Girl fans: Penn Badgley will be fuzz-free in no time!

The actor, 25, who showed off his bushy beard during COACH's summer party at The Highline in NYC June 19, admitted to Vulture he's "probably going to shave it in about a week."

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The reason Badgley grew it in the first place, he said, was that it gave him "a chance to try" a new look. "I've never really had the opportunity to grow one. . . because of work. And I know everybody hates it."

When Badgley spoke to Us Weekly at the star-studded bash, he said his look is "always changing" -- just not on camera. "I actually looked like this a year ago, but nobody saw it, and then I had to shave."

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With Gossip Girl ending its six season run this fall, Badgley -- who's still going strong with Zoe Kravitz, 23 -- is eager to pursue more film projects.

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"It'll be bittersweet. I'm sure we all want to go on to. . . not bigger things, but different things," he told Us. "It will be a complicated feeling of ambivalence."

This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: Penn Badgley: "I Know Everyone Hates" My Bushy Beard