Blake Lively

Blake Ellender Brown (born August 25, 1987), known professionally as Blake Lively, is an American actress. A daughter of actor Ernie Lively, she made her professional debut in his directorial project ''Sandman'' (1998). She had her breakthrough role in ''The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants'' (2005) and its 2008 sequel. Lively achieved stardom with her portrayal of Serena van der Woodsen in the CW teen drama television series ''Gossip Girl'' (2007–2012). During this period, she also took on supporting roles in the romantic comedies ''New York, I Love You'' (2008) and '' The Private Lives of Pippa Lee'' (2009), as well as in the thrillers '' The Town'' (2010) and '' Savages'' (2012).

Lively shifted her focus to films in ensuing years. She starred in the romantic fantasy '' The Age of Adaline'' (2015), the survival film '' The Shallows'' (2016), the comedy '' Café Society'' (2016), and the comedy thriller '' A Simple Favor'' (2018) and its 2025 sequel. She expanded her career by directing Taylor Swift's 2021 music video " I Bet You Think About Me", and produced and starred opposite Justin Baldoni in Baldoni's romantic drama '' It Ends with Us'' (2024). The latter emerged as her biggest box office success, but drew controversy, resulting in a number of lawsuits, including Lively and Baldoni suing each other for defamation. In 2025, she was included in ''Time'' magazine's 100 most influential people list.

Early life

Blake Ellender Brown was born on August 25, 1987, in the Tarzana neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Her mother, Elaine Lively (née McAlpin), worked as a talent scout, and her father, Ernie Lively (né Brown), was an actor. Lively was named after her grandmother's brother. She has an older brother, Eric, and three half-siblings from her mother's previous marriage, Lori, Robyn, and Jason. Her parents and siblings have all worked in the entertainment industry.

During Lively's childhood, her parents took her along to the acting classes they taught, rather than leave her with babysitters. She later said that watching her parents teach helped her learn the "drills" and gain confidence as she got older and began working in the industry herself. She made her professional debut at age 10, appearing in the 1998 film ''Sandman'', directed by her father. Lively describes her role as a "bit part."'' Allure'' "The Anti-Gossip Girl" (May 2009). She was initially not interested in acting and wanted to attend Stanford University.

She is a 2005 graduate of Burbank High School, where she was a cheerleader, a member of the championship choir, and class president. Her elder brother asked his talent agent to send her to several auditions during the summer months. Subsequently, cast as Bridget in ''The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants'' (2005), she filmed her scenes between her junior and senior years of high school.

Career

2005–2006: Career beginnings

''The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants'' was released in 2005. Lively's performance earned her a nomination for a Teen Choice Award for "Choice Movie Breakout – Female". In 2006, Lively co-starred with Justin Long in '' Accepted'', and she had minor roles in the horror film, ''Simon Says''. ''Accepted'' was not well received by critics, but Lively's performance was, earning her a 'Breakthrough Award' from ''Hollywood Life''. Lively starred in '' Elvis and Anabelle'' (2007) as Anabelle, a bulimic girl who hoped to win a beauty pageant. She said of getting into character for the role that she had "shed serious weight" for her height. She stated that that process was difficult for her because food was "the No. 1 love of my life."

2007–2012: ''Gossip Girl''

Lively was cast in The CW's series ''Gossip Girl'', based on the novel series ''Gossip Girl'' by Cecily von Ziegesar, which premiered in September 2007. Already having deferred college for a year, Lively intended to turn the role down and become a student, but was told that she could attend college part-time while filming the show (she later said "This is advice to anyone: when they say, 'We promise, but we can't put it in writing,' there's a reason they can't put it in writing"). She played the role of Serena van der Woodsen in the teen drama until 2012 when the show ended. Her first magazine cover was the November 2007 issue of '' CosmoGirl'', where she discussed her time in high school and her career prior to ''Gossip Girl''.'' CosmoGirl''. (November 2007).

In 2008, Lively reprised her role as Bridget in the sequel '' The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2''. Similarly to the first film, Lively's performance was positively received by critics. As of November 2008, the film had earned over $44 million at the box office. In 2009, she appeared as Gabrielle DiMarco in the romantic comedy '' New York, I Love You'', a sequel to the 2006 film ''Paris, je t'aime''. Despite positive critical reception, the film failed at the box office.

Lively portrayed the younger version of the titlular character in '' The Private Lives of Pippa Lee'' (2009) to critical acclaim. Paul Byrnes, of the ''Brisbane Times'', described her performance in the film as "sensational". In October 2009, she began filming her scenes for her role as Kristina "Kris" Coughlin in the 2010 film '' The Town'', based on Chuck Hogan's novel ''Prince of Thieves''. The film, which was directed by and starred Ben Affleck, was released in the United States on September 17, 2010. On her performance, '' Variety'' wrote that Lively was "almost unrecognizable ndhas fierce, pained moments as the moll and single mother .. tossed aside."Chang, Justin
"The Town Review"
. '' Variety'' September 9, 2010. Retrieved September 18, 2010. In December of that year, she appeared in the music video for The Lonely Island's " I Just Had Sex" together with Jessica Alba. Lively played Carol Ferris, the female lead and love interest of Hal Jordan in the superhero film ''Green Lantern'', which was released in June 2011. The film grossed a worldwide total of $219,851,172. In 2011 she was featured in the annual ''Time'' magazine 100 influential people. Additionally, AskMen.com named her the most desirable woman of 2011 and ''People'' magazine named her one of 2012's Most Beautiful at Every Age.

In 2012, Lively starred in Oliver Stone's '' Savages'' alongside Taylor Kitsch, Aaron Johnson, Salma Hayek, and John Travolta. She replaced Jennifer Lawrence as Ophelia, after Lawrence dropped out to do ''The Hunger Games''. '' HitFix'' film critic Drew McWeeny said Lively's performance was "smart and sad precisely because she plays O as such a broken, needy little soul". Also that year, she was selected as the face of the new Gucci fragrance, Gucci Premiere. She appeared in a short film ad directed by Nicolas Winding Refn for the fragrance.

Since 2013: Film career

She starred in the film '' The Age of Adaline'' (2015), opposite Michiel Huisman and Harrison Ford, playing a woman who "stops aging after recovering from a near-fatal accident." ''The Atlantic'' stated that she showed her "potential as a leading lady" primarily in the second half of the film, citing her "clipped delivery and coy restraint" as well as her "capable perform nce within the emotional intensity of the film. In 2016, Lively starred in the survival horror film '' The Shallows''. It received positive reviews and her performance was praised by critics. That year, she also starred in Woody Allen's romantic comedy film, '' Café Society'' which premiered at the 69th Cannes Film Festival. Lively enjoyed her experience working with Allen stating, "It's really cool to work with a director who's done so much, because he knows exactly what he wants", adding that he was "very empowering".

Lively starred opposite Jason Clarke in psychological drama '' All I See Is You'' (2016), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival to mixed reviews. In 2018, she starred in the mystery-thriller '' A Simple Favor'', alongside Anna Kendrick and Henry Golding, and directed by Paul Feig. The film was released on September 14 and Lively's performance was acclaimed. ''Variety'' wrote that "She has her moments .. many of them physical .. Lively's Emily is both repellent and irresistible." Some critics believed Lively could achieve her first Academy Award nomination for the role, however a nomination never eventuated.

Lively next played the lead, a drug-addicted prostitute turned assassin, in '' The Rhythm Section'', the film adaptation of the Mark Burnell novel ''The Rhythm Section'', produced by Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, and directed by Reed Morano. The film was released by Paramount Pictures on January 31, 2020. '' Variety'' noted Lively's performance as "display nga realistic near-incompetence in the face of danger hatmakes her relatable in ways very few cinematic assassins have ever been."

In May 2021, it was announced that Lively will star in '' Lady Killer'' as the lead character, Josie Schuller. She made her directorial debut as the co-writer and director of the music video for Taylor Swift's song " I Bet You Think About Me" featuring American singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton, released on November 15, 2021, from Swift's re-recorded album ''Red (Taylor's Version)'' (2021). In April 2022, it was announced Lively would make her feature directing debut with an adaptation of the graphic novel ''Seconds'' by Bryan Lee O'Malley, with Edgar Wright writing the screenplay and producing. In January 2023, it was announced that she would star in the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel '' It Ends with Us'' as the lead character, Lily Bloom.

In August 2024, Lively and Reynolds became the first married Hollywood couple to have two separate films which they starred in top the box office on the same weekend since Bruce Willis and Demi Moore in 1990, as their respective films '' It Ends With Us'' and ''Deadpool & Wolverine'' would occupy the number one and number two spots at the box office during the August 9–11 weekend.

''It Ends with Us'' controversy

Several months after the troubled production and release of the romantic drama ''It Ends with Us'', Lively filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department, alleging she experienced sexual harassment from the film's director and co-star, Justin Baldoni. ''The New York Times'' reported that Baldoni then hired a PR crisis management team to "bury" Lively after she confronted him about the alleged harassment. Documents obtained by Lively via subpoena allegedly showed a coordinated effort, on behalf of Baldoni, to discredit her across both traditional and social media.

Colleen Hoover, who wrote the novel on which the film was based, released a statement supporting her. Lively's co-stars from ''The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants''— Amber Tamblyn, America Ferrera, and Alexis Bledel—released a joint statement in her defense. "Throughout the filming of ''It Ends with Us''," they stated in one passage, "we saw her summon the courage to ask for a safe workplace for herself and colleagues on set, and we are appalled to read the evidence of a premeditated and vindictive effort that ensued to discredit her voice." Actors Gwyneth Paltrow, Amy Schumer, Paul Feig, Jenny Slate, and Brandon Sklenar, and film producer Alex Saks, have also spoken out for Lively, as have representatives of SAG-AFTRA and Sony Pictures. Journalist Liz Plank announced she was leaving the podcast ''Man Enough'', which she had previously co-hosted with Baldoni. Actresses Kate Beckinsale and Abigail Breslin, both inspired by Lively, spoke out sharing their experiences with a crew member and co-star respectively, who were inappropriate with them on set.

In response, Justin Baldoni filed a libel lawsuit for $250 million against ''The New York Times'' accusing them of pushing an "unverified and self-serving narrative" using "cherry-picked and altered communications stripped of necessary context," and allegedly ignoring evidence disputing her claims. ''The New York Times'' defended itself: "The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead...To date, Wayfarer Studios, Mr. Baldoni, the other subjects of the article and their representatives have not pointed to a single error."

After Baldoni filed suit against the ''New York Times'', Lively filed a federal suit against Baldoni for the same issues from her complaint to the Civil Rights Department (which had not yet been an official lawsuit, but merely a complaint to a department). Journalist Matt Schimkowitz argued that "ironically, Baldoni's lawsuit all but challenged Lively to do this, arguing that her filing a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department last week was to avoid scrutiny of a lawsuit. Unfortunately for Baldoni, this latest filing makes much of Baldoni's defenses murkier."

On January 16, 2025, Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, told NBC that his client filed a $400 million defamation counter suit against Lively and Reynolds. On January 31, Baldoni filed a 168-page timeline of events, including text messages, to support the assertion that Lively had conducted a smear campaign against him.

Other ventures

Lively has described herself as a "foodie and cook", and has said that Martha Stewart is her "idol". She has also said that she is a fan of Nigella Lawson's work. In 2008, Lively baked a cake with Stewart during an episode of '' The Martha Stewart Show''. Lively attended a 2010 tailor-made workshop at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and has spoken of her desire to return to the culinary school for further instruction.

She has remarked that, when travelling, she always takes cookery classes to immerse herself in the local culture. Lively has also spoken publicly of her desire to become a restaurateur. In 2011, she created a s'mores cupcake to be sold at Sprinkles bakeries. In 2012, Lively's wedding reception was featured in '' Martha Stewart Weddings''; food photography was the focal point of the picture spread. In 2013, she appeared in ''Elle Decor'' to recount her experiences designing a custom La Cornue oven for her newly purchased Bedford home. She filmed a cooking segment in 2013 for ''Vogue'' website, demonstrating how to make a brie pastry.

Lively launched ''Preserve'' in 2014, a digital magazine and e-commerce website with hand-made one-of-a-kind items all selected by Lively. In October, 2015, Lively closed the site, stating that it had been launched before it was ready and that she planned rebuild and relaunch it properly.

In 2021, Lively launched Betty Buzz, a line of non-alcoholic drink mixers. In 2023, Lively launched Betty Booze, a line of alcoholic canned cocktails. In 2024, Lively launched Blake Brown, a cruelty-free haircare line.

Personal life

From 2007 to 2010, Lively was in a relationship with her ''Gossip Girl'' co-star Penn Badgley.

Lively first met Ryan Reynolds in early 2010 while filming ''Green Lantern'', in which they co-starred. They began dating in October 2011 and married on September 9, 2012, at Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. They have four children - three daughters, James (born December 2014), Inez (born September 2016), and Betty (born October 2019); and a son, Olin (born February 2023). The family resides in Pound Ridge, New York. Lively and Reynolds are close friends with singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who named the characters in her song " Betty" after their daughters.Swift is the godmother to Lively's three daughters.

Following the civil rights protests in 2020, Lively's husband Reynolds publicly apologized and expressed regret for their use of the Boone Hall Plantation due to its association with slavery, stating: "What we saw at the time was a wedding venue on Pinterest. What we saw after was a place built upon devastating tragedy. Years ago we got married again at home—but shame works in weird ways. A giant fucking mistake like that can either cause you to shut down or it can reframe things and move you into action...Re-patterning and challenging lifelong social conditioning is a job that doesn't end."

In a 2012 conversation with '' Allure'', Lively said that she does not drink and has never tried drugs.

Advocacy and endorsements

During the 2008 United States presidential election, Lively expressed her support for Barack Obama. Lively and Penn Badgley appeared in a pro-Obama commercial, as part of MoveOn.org's Youth Vote program. The commercial, directed by Doug Liman, aired during ''Gossip Girl'' on the CW, MTV and Comedy Central. In 2013, she appeared in a video clip for Gucci's "Chime for Change" campaign that aims to raise funds and awareness of women's issues in the areas of education, health, and justice. In addition, Lively has worked to heighten public awareness of missing and exploited children and on-going efforts of law enforcement on their behalf.

In 2011, Lively became a spokeswoman for Chanel and their new Mademoiselle handbag. In October 2013, she became a spokeswoman for L'Oreal.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lively, Blake
1987 births
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
Actresses from Los Angeles
Actresses from Burbank, California
American child actresses
American film actresses
American gun control activists
American television actresses
Blake
Living people
People from Tarzana, Los Angeles
Brighton Hall School alumni