Gwendolyn “Gwen” Runck is a main character in That '90s Show. She is the daughter of Sherri Runck and Nate Runck's maternal younger half-sister. She becomes best friends with her next-door neighbors' granddaughter, Leia Forman. She is portrayed by Ashley Aufderheide.
Background[]
Gwen Runck is a brave, daring, independent and rebellious. Gwen is a proud feminist and loves to sing while blasting the song "You Oughta Now" in her bedroom, partly to annoy her brother Nate.
Although she's cool and very social within her inner circle, she's very much a loner and doesn't fit in at school. Until she discovers a best friend in the most unlikely of places: the granddaughter of her next door neighbours visiting from Chicago; who ends up staying over the summer in Point Place.
Series arc[]
Season One[]
Outside, Leia hears a girl singing, so she walks to her window and is caught by the girl, who calls her a creeper. Leia apologizes and says that she has a bootleg from Chicago, which she says she will get for the girl, whose name is Gwen. In her room, Gwen and Leia talk about their hobbies. Leia says that she is part of the debate club, which makes the girl say that popular people suck. Gwen teases her brother Nate by playing music loudly, which makes Leia laugh.
At Gwen’s house, Ozzie cheats at Uno. Gwen tells Leia that both her and Ozzie had met in detention after he told his math teacher that his wife was cheating on him. Nate comes downstairs followed by his girlfriend Nik and a boy with great news. Jay sits next to Leia, who gets nervous by him. Nate says that while parked, someone mistook them and thought they were there to pick up a prepaid keg, which they took with them. However, they still need a tap.
Ozzie is impressed by how difficult it is to open the beer as Nate hits the keg. Leia says that they should go back to Mamma’s to buy a tap, but Jay says that it is not easy to do. Gwen and Nik are calm, as the former mentions that Leia should buy the tap because Mamma does not know her. Leia agrees to do it, but Ozzie says that it would not work because Leia would get carded.
Leia walks into Mamma’s store as a pregnant woman and tries to buy the tap. Mamma realizes that she is underage and is about to call the cops. However, Leia asks how she would explain selling a keg, which Mamma says she did not do. In the end, Leia gets the tap, which makes Gwen proud. She tells Leia that she should stay, and even though Leia is hesitant at first, she wants to be best friends with Gwen.
In the basement, Kitty welcomes Leia, Ozzie, Jay, Nik Nate, and Gwen to their basement, as Red tells them the ground rules. Jay thanks Kitty for allowing them to use her basement, but phrases it weirdly, which makes Jay ask him what is wrong with him.
The teenagers look through old stuff, and Gwen finds a bag, saying that Leia’s grandmother had “hooked them up”.
In the basement, Leia hands Nate, Nik, Ozzie, Gwen and Jay a Raisin Bran, which does not seem to excite anyone. She plays the movie, but it turns out that it is only a recording of Leo talking about some of his life experiences. Leia asks if they have any fun stories to share, but Nate starts choking on the Raisin Bran until he is helped by Nik. Jay starts choking, and Leia leaves because she had wanted it to be a perfect night.
Leia leaves, followed by Gwen. Leia tells her she is a fraud since she had never even seen “Clerks”, and actually loves “Free Willy”. Gwen does not care, but asks why she had melted down before. Leia says that she feels like an impostor because they are all very close and cool, but Gwen tells her that she has a basement, adding that their town is boring and she actually found a bunch of people who do not fit in. Nate runs upstairs and tells them that he found weed.
In the basement, Leia hands Nate, Nik, Ozzie, Gwen and Jay all smoke weed and talk about how much they love “Free Willy”. When Willy jumps, even Ozzie gets very excited, which surprises everyone.
Nik and Nate make out as Leia walks down to the basement. Jay tells Leia they do not care, and as Gwen mentions kissing, Gwen and Ozzie realize that Leia had not kissed anyone yet. Leia says that she wants to kiss someone, so Gwen says that they need to get her to kiss someone and proposes they go the mall, which Leia agrees to. Ozzie says that he has kissed a boy named Etienne, who Leia says is his fake Canadian boyfriend.
At the mall, Red tells Leia, Gwen, and Ozzie that he had driven them so they could get out of his house. Red tells them that he would stay in a massage chair reading his paper, when a vendor shows up to sell him that chair. As Red complains, the vendor turns on the massage function on the chair, so Red ends up buying it immediately.
Gwen comforts Leia, as Ozzie keeps on saying he has a Canadian boyfriend. Leia tries flirting with different boys to no avail. Eventually, a mall cop tells her she needs to leave. As she tells Gwen they need to go, they find her making out with a boy herself.
Nik tells Nate that he might be having a reaction to one of her lip smackers, as his lips are swollen. Gwen describes it as looking like "a monkey's ass", so Nik takes Nate to a hospital. Leia asks what is wrong with her, as Ozzie mentions she is desperate. Gwen suggests she kiss Jay, as he is always flirting with her and he is a Kelso, which means he is a "man-whore".
At the mall, Leia tells Gwen, Sherri, and Ozzie that even though things did not work out the way she wanted them to, she is not worried and is excited for what is next. Sherri says that she feels the same way, as Ozzie asks if she would wait around for Jay, which Leia says she would not do because he had told her she was cute, smart, and interesting which Gwen had been telling her all along. She says she is now more confident, takes some mints and kisses the boy she had wanted to kiss before.
Ozzie says that he wants to go to a rave in Milwaukee, but Gwen says that she had experiences with drugs at a rave once. Leia says that she wants Jay because she does not know where things are going and wants a boyfriend.
Gwen tells Leia that she does not know if she is ready for Jay because he is a player and she had only had her first kiss while Jay had had sex in a lake. Ozzie and Gwen want her to be okay, as Ozzie mentions that during labor day, he had left many Jennifers crying. Gwen tells her to be smart about dating Jay, so she decides to let him come to her first.
Nik cannot believe that Jay's plan is to wait for Leia to see him all oiled up, as he applies oil to his chest. He says he also has his guitar, as both Leia and Gwen come outside. Gwen says that he looks like a wet hotdog, which he takes as a compliment, and Leia is not able to hide her smile and blushes profusely.
Gwen and Nik talk alone about how Jay actually likes Leia, but will not approach her because it is "not allowed in his family". Gwen says that Leia would not be asking Jay out either, so things were over, as they see Jay flirting heavily with Leia.
Leia walks into her room, where she finds Nik waiting for her. Nik tells her to tell Jay she likes him, which she says she cannot do. Gwen and Ozzie walk in, so Nik tells Leia that she has tickets to a movie, which she could use with Jay. However, Leia says that she already has plans; since they cannot come up with one, Ozzie says that they would be going to a rave in Milwaukee, which Nik says they would be going to as well. Leia says that she would never be allowed to go to a rave and feels bad about lying to her grandparents.
Downstairs, Leia tells Red and Kitty she and Gwen would be going to a movie, but does a terrible job of lying. As soon as he closes the door, he tells Kitty they were lying, but she believes in Leia.
At the rave, Jay tells Nik and Nate that he put on a bunch of pheromones. Leia tells Gwen she thinks the car smells horrible, also saying that she brought the glowsticks and pacifiers. However, they realize that they did not bring Ozzie and had left him in the driveway.
After some time, Jay is surrounded by girls, while Leia dances with Gwen. Leia decides to step it up, but is not able to get attention with her bad dancing moves.
Gwen tells Leia to stop dancing with only her, as the latter moves away and is found by Red. Later, she says that she cannot believe she had grinded on her grandpa, who would kill him. She blames Gwen, but she simply tells Leia that she should do what she feels is right without anyone holding her back, so she should go get Jay if she really wants him. However, she does not know what she wants anymore.
Red and Kitty walk into the living room, telling Gwen to leave. Leia apologizes, but Kitty and Red are very mad, saying that she was grounded for a week. Red tells her he is glad she is home safe and is happy to be the good cop, while Kitty realizes she likes being the bad cop, which Red says is how he feels all the time.
Later, Leia tells Gwen that she told Jay that so she had all the power.
Nik tells Nate that a hot tub would be disgusting because it is contaminated, but he says that it is free. Gwen teases him over the fact that he cannot grow a moustache and Nate insists on getting the tub and mentions that they need to talk about their relationship. Jay sarcastically tells Leia that he loves just being friends, as Gwen tells Leia that what she did work. After that, Nate and Jay go to get the hot tub.
Gwen and Nik sit next to each other, saying that they never hang out on their own. Gwen says that she prefers other people, which Nik agrees with, but she says that she does not like that Nate went for the hot tub. When Nik asks if they want to do something, Gwen says that they have nothing in common, but they smoke weed and have a good time together.
Nik and Gwen talk about what to do now, so they dress up and take pictures together, which Nik says is something she believes would be cool to do wuth her.
Nik and Gwen run into each other at a coffee shop, both admitting they had had fun and agreeing to pretend it had never happened. At their table, Nate tells Nik that he got the goat because it was free, while Ozzie tells Gwen and Leia that step seven would now be to tell his pediatrician. Jay walks in, so Leia asks herself how long she had to keep the friend thing going. Ozzie tells her that if he could come out to her grandmother, then she can tell the guy who knows she likes him that she likes him.
Ozzie does not want to watch 90210 anymore, but Leia tells him it is a cope mechanism after what she calls a breakup between her and Jay. Nik, Nate, and Gwen walk in and tell her she needs to get it together. Leia wonders how long it will take her to feel better again, but her friends encourage her to feel better by smoking weed and giving her a sweater for her birthday. Leia is excited to turn 15 and says that it will be a new year for her.
Nik is concerned due to Nate having spelled her name wrong on a birthday card before sitting down next to Leia's, who was treating Gwen and Ozzie to lunch for having taken care of her. Ozzie laughs when she mentions she had not been that bad, but Gwen is relieved that she is finally better. However, Jay walks in with Serena, which worries Gwen and Ozzie. Leia walks over to them and greets them awkwardly, before inviting them to her party.
Leia tells Ozzie and Gwen that she is not over Jay, which they already knew. She says that it is all her fault because she is obsessing over him, but not actually going after him like what happens in 90210. Leia tells them that she needs to change her attitude into that of someone popular, saying that she will show them in her party.
Leia tells Gwen that she will wait for Jay and go after him. However, after an hour, he still does not show up. She imagines David from 90210 there, but she is surprised by Gwen, who she tells that she is done being pathetic. As soon as the doorbell sounds, she throws herself at the door and opens for Bob, who tells her that she will sing for her. He sings a very inappropriate song, which Nate and Nik dance to romantically. Red offers Leia to get some air, which she accepts.
Ozzie finds it odd that Gwen wants to get a tattoo of the Kool-Aid man, but she tells him that the key is to not overthink it, while Leia tells Jay that she misses him. Nate tells him to come over, as Nik leaves because she was going to meet with her SAT tutor, which makes Nate jealous because she is with him all the time. Ozzie tells Nate that if it is bothering him, they should check it out.
Jay, Leia, and Gwen pick up a very wound up Kitty who will not stop singing and jumping, joined by Gwen. Leia tells her friend not to encourage her grandmother, while Gwen mentions that there is a tattoo shop nearby. Leia and Jay refuse to stop along the way, but Kitty and Gwen force them to do so by covering Jay's eyes.
Leia and Jay are worried that Red will beat them back home as Gwen and Kitty go back in. Gwen mentions that she did not get a tattoo in the end, as Kitty shows up with one of her own on her forearm.
Kitty cannot believe that she got a tattoo, while Jay says that Red would kill him. Gwen says that she at least did not get a worse tattoo, while Leia apologizes. Sherri walks in and is shocked by the tattoo, which Kitty wants to remove. Everybody hears a car pull up and Jay refuses to leave. Red walks in and asks Kitty about her day, wondering what Jay was doing there. Leia says that her boyfriend bought the chicken, which Kitty uses to cover up the tattoo.
In the basement, Leia tells everyone that she has a hickey from Jay in order to get attention, which nobody can see. Gwen says that she is getting used to her and Jay being a couple. Nik asks if things were happening between them and if she touched "it," which Ozzie says he doubts. Leia says that she did not know she was supposed to and says that she was not going to touch "it". Jay walks in and asks what she would be touching as Nate has a hard time getting an umbrella in the house.
Later, Leia tells Nik that now she is overthinking everything that happens between her and Jay, as Nate offers everyone fancy candy from Japan sent by his father. Gwen points out that their father is the oldest player in the Japanese baseball league as Kitty heads downstairs and says that she would be grabbing some of Red's junk from the back. Gwen tells everyone that that is where they hide the stash, but Jay says that he hid it well in a box, which Kitty takes from him. Ozzie realizes they no longer have a stash adn everyone blames Jay for it, but he says that he would grab it.
Upstairs, Jay realizes that Kitty has a lot of identical boxes, making it hard for him to find the stash. Jay tells his friends, and Leia grows desperate, as Gwen says that they should split up and look for it. Gwen goes with Nate, Ozzie goes with Jay, and Leia is teamed up with Nik, who says they would cover the basement, which meant the same as doing nothing. Jay gives Leia a kiss and she throws her arms back awkwardly, which makes Nik question what had just happened. Nik makes fun of her, but Leia says that she does not know what is happening with her.
Nate tells Gwen that they should get a drug-smelling dog from the cops, which Gwen thinks is stupid. Kitty sees them, so she tells them to help, saying she needs Nate's muscles to get rid of a wooden moose.
Nate brings down the wooden moose, but finds Gwen using the shirt his father had sent him and got it stained. She tells him it is too small for him anyway, but she says that she cannot touch his stuff. Kitty says that she understands, but tells them to get everything out.
Kitty tells Nate that she needs more help. Nate shows Gwen that he has her blanket, which she cannot sleep without. The siblings start fighting and leave Kitty on her own.
Nate and Gwen keep fighting, as Nate says that he is really annoyed by the fact that she is wearing the shirt his dad had gotten him, saying she would not understand because she sees her father way more often. Gwen says that she still misses him because she does not see her father frequently either, but did not know that Nate felt that way about the shirt. Both of them hug and call each other idiots, as Kitty says that she also misses her father.
Sherri rushes into the house, telling Kitty, Nate and Gwen that Red was coming back and as Kitty tells Sherri about the shirt, Sherri calls Brian. She tells him that he needs to send Nate shirts that actually fit him.
Leia and Nik are happy to be smoking again, as Nate and Gwen laugh together. Jay and Ozzie are happy as well, joined by the wooden moose that Nate was supposed to move. As it stops raining, the teenagers go outside and dance together. Leia and Jay kiss without it being awkward and they sit together on the driveway.
Leia cannot believe summer is almost over, while Gwen complains and Ozzie mentions he had not even started his summer reading. However, Nik is optimistic about going back to school. Nate tries to support her, but is not able to and complains that he was supposed to work out for football, but had not done so. Jay tells him to go to his gym and also mentions he had changed shifts so he could spend the weekend with Leia on her last weekend.
Gwen asks Leia if she was going to blow her off, since they already had plans to sneak into the country club, but Leia says that she had totally forgotten. Leia says that she would cancel with Jay, which Ozzie says is weird and calls her a double booker.
Nate walks into the Foreman’s kitchen telling Nik and Kitty saying that he was very sore from the gym. Nik tells him to go downstairs, but Kitty tells him to rub some Bengay on where he was sore in order to help, which she mentions she does when she is finished making breakfast, which makes her reconsider applying for the job. Ozzie and Gwen walk in ready to go to the country club, but their friend is not back yet, so Gwen gets angry.
As Jay and Leai stop, she asks him why if they did not even know where they were. She complains that she was supposed to be done with him. He asks why she is acting weird and she tells him that she made plans with Gwen and he tells her that she should have told her, but she did not want to disappoint either one. Leo walks in and wonders where the overlook is, offering to let them use his car to get back.
At the country club, Gwen complains about Leia, as Ozzie orders a drink. Leia makes it, but Gwen says that she does not care about what she had gone through to get there and ignores her friend because of how important the plan was to her. She tells Leia to leave and go to Chicago, telling security that Leia is not a member.
As Leia walks into her basement, she sees Nathan on the couch. He asks her to pour water in his mouth because he could not move, so she helps him. Nate asks what she was doing there, and she says that his sister had said some mean things to her. Nate tells Leia to forgive her because she is like that sometimes, especially since she is sad to be losing her friend. However, Leia says that Gwen would be doing cool stuff while she went back to Chicago, which Nate says would not be the case. Leia says that she would be sad to lose Gwen and he tells her to tell his sister.
In her room, Gwen is laying down on her bed, while Leia says that sometimes distance can make people closer. Gwen tells her not to try talking about them, while Leia says that wherever she goes, she would be talking to her best friend because they are stuck together.
Ozzie, Nik, and Gwen pose for a photo as Leia tries taking them. Jay walks in, saying Nate has a keg while he has snacks. Nate mentions it is the same beer as the 4th of July. Ozzie mentions that they cannot be that desperate, but they all end up dancing as they drink it. Leia asks Ozzie if he will be sad when she is gone, but Ozzie says he will not. Nate gets confused and says that he thought things would get weird when he told Leia about them breaking up before she leaves, but he tells him he had not mentioned it yet, as Leia stands in disbelief.
Leia cannot believe Jay is breaking up with her, telling him she was only one of his "summer things", proceeding to spray his genitals with cheez whiz. Jay says that long distance relationships are tough, but Leia does not believe he will not even try. Ozzie and Gwen tell her that she should think things clearly, but she leaves.
Kitty is in a good mood, but admits to Red that she was not in such a good mood until she realized that her granddaughter would not be gone for long because her boyfriend and best friend live there. Kitty tells Leia that Jay had called her, but she hangs up on him. Gwen walks into the kitchen, wondering if she was feeling better, but she is not.
Gwen tells Kitty that Leia had broken up with Jay, which worries Kitty since she would not be wanting to come back. As Red finally enjoys peace and quiet, a tree falls into his house.
Sherri thanks Fez for helping her talk to the landlord. Gwen walks in asking for 20 dollars so she could get something for Leia, so Fez takes the opportunity to give it to her. Sherri tells Fez that that was very sweet and the landlord, Fenton, walks in. He tells Fez that he owns the place and many other properties. He brags about how rich he is and both of them start fighting. Fenton tells Sherri that he would not do anything about the tree until she paid rent, which had now gone up.
Leia finds Nate in his house, but he says that Gwen is out. Leia says that she wanted to apologize because she had overreacted, but did feel that the fact that everyone was agreeing with Jay made it worse. Nate says that in reality, he agrees with Leia because of his own problems with his girlfriend. Nate says that love is very powerful and they reach the conclusion that it is very lucky to find a special person who understands you.
As Nate and Leia are about to kiss in the former's kitchen, Gwen walks in and is shocked. After Leia runs away, Nate says that there was a fly on his junk.
Leia and Gwen sit down, as Leia is not able to explain how she was about to kiss her brother, which makes her shudder. Gwen remembers Leia when she first had gotten there and how she was so innocent. She tells her friend to go back to Chicago until she came back the next summer, which she could not wait for. Gwen gives Leia a spray can so they can break another law.
Leia thanks Red for everything, and he tells her that the basement was off-limits until she returned. Kitty tells her that her friends could use the basement whenever they want while she is gone. Nate walks up to Leia, and she tells him they do not need to talk about it, but he mentions that it had meant something to him, which she admits to as well after. Jay shows up followed by Ozzie, Nik, and Gwen, saying that he was glad to have caught up to her because he was wrong and is not ready to give up on them, begging for another chance. Leia tells him that is very sweet, but she is very confused. Jay kisses her, so Gwen rescues her as Donna makes it to the car. Leia apologizes to Nik, but Gwen does not allow her to explain. As Leia leaves, Ozzie finally cries, wanting her to come back.
Season Two[]
TBA
Relationships[]
Leia Forman[]
After Leia came to Point Place, Gwen was the first person from the Gang she met. The two quickly became best friends, despite differences which were between them. Gwen was the one who showed Leia how to be different kind of person. After their first meeting, Gwen gave Leia a nose ring and one day later, on July 4, 1995, Leia met Gwen's other friends, buying beer in one of the stores, and then hanging out with them on the Water Tower.
Later, Gwen is the one who advises Leia on her love life. She encourages her to have her first ever kiss with some random guy at the mall. In episode ''Dirty Double Booker'' Leia needs to decide who she wants to spend her last moments with in Point Place. Jay or Gwen. Eventually, she decides to choose both; at first she's at the picnic with Jay, getting lost in the woods, and being late, she comes to a meeting with Gwen, who's angry at her, not willing to talk to her. In the end, the two make up, and spend Leia's last moments in Point Place together. When they're saying goodbye to each other, the two are arranging talking on the phone when Leia's home.
Nikki[]
- Main page: Nikki and Gwen
Nikki is Gwen's good friend, despite girls never admit it. They enjoy getting stoned together, and dress up.
Romances[]
Kevin[]
Kevin is a boy Gwen met at a shopping mall in episode ''Lip Smackers''. They shared a passionate kiss, after what Kevin claimed it was the best day of his life. When Gwen was called by Ozzie and Leia, she left Kevin, saying goodbye to him.
Quotes[]
"Turns out, if a mint is 40 bucks, it's not a mint."
"A bunch of rich people put up a fence to keep us out? Screw them!"
Photos[]
