Blake Lively

Blake Ellender Lively (née Brown; August 25, 1987)[1] is an American actress.

Lively is known for starring as Serena van der Woodsen in the CW drama television series Gossip Girl (2007–2012).[2][3] She also starred in a number of films, including The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005), The Town (2010), Green Lantern (2011), Savages (2012), The Age of Adaline (2015) and A Simple Favor (2018).

She has been married to actor Ryan Reynolds since 2012, with whom she has two children.[4]

Early life
Blake Lively was born as Blake Ellender Brown on August 25, 1987 in the Tarzana neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.[5] Her mother, Elaine (née McAlpin), worked as a talent scout, and her father, Ernie Lively (né Ernest Wilson Brown, Jr.), was an actor.[6][7] Lively was named after her grandmother's brother.[8][9] She is of English, Irish, and German descent.

She has an older brother, Eric Lively, two half-sisters, Lori Lively and Robyn Lively, and a half-brother, Jason Lively. Her half-siblings are from her mother's previous marriage. Both of her parents and all of her siblings are, or have been, in the entertainment industry.[10][11]

During her childhood, her parents took her to acting classes that they taught because they did not want to leave her with a babysitter. Lively said that watching her parents teach acting helped her learn the "drills" and gain confidence as she got older and entered the entertainment industry.[11][12] She began her acting career at age 10, when she appeared in the 1998 film Sandman, which was directed by Lively's father. She describes her role as a "bit part".[13] She was initially not particularly interested in acting and wanted to attend Stanford University.[8]

She attended Burbank High School, where she was a senior class president, a cheerleader and a member of the championship choir.[14] Her brother Eric asked his talent agent to send her on a few auditions over a period of a few months during the summer.[7] From these auditions, she was cast as Bridget for The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005) and filmed her scenes in between her junior and senior years.[15]

2005–2006: Career beginnings
She appeared in the film adaptation of the novel of the same name, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, in 2005, as Bridget, one of the four female leads. Lively's performance in the film earned her a nomination for a Teen Choice Award for "Choice Movie Breakout – Female.[16] In 2006, Lively co-starred with Justin Long in Accepted, and Lively had minor roles in the horror film, Simon Says. While Accepted was not well received by critics, Lively's performance was, earning her a 'Breakthrough Award' from Hollywood Life.[17] In 2007, she played one of the two title characters in Elvis and Anabelle as Anabelle, a bulimic girl who hoped to win a beauty pageant. Lively said of getting into character for the role that she had 'shed serious weight' for her height. Lively stated that that process was difficult for her because food is "the No. 1 love of my life."[18] MovieLine.com praised her performance in the film and credited it as having been her "breakthrough role".[19]

2007–2012: Gossip Girl
Lively was cast in The CW's series Gossip Girl, based on the novel series of the same name 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").[20] She played the role of Serena van der Woodsen in the teen drama until 2012 when the show ended.[21][22] Her first magazine cover was the November 2007 issue of Cosmo Girl, where she discussed her time in high school and her career prior to Gossip Girl.[23]

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.[24][25] As of November 2008, the film had earned over $44 million at the box office.[26] 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.[27][28]

One of Lively's most acclaimed roles to date is her supporting role as the younger version of the title character in The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009).[29]Paul Byrnes, of the Brisbane Times, described Lively's performance in the film as "sensational".[30] In October 2009 Lively 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.[31] The film, which was directed by and starred Ben Affleck, was released in the United States on September 17, 2010. In December of that year, Lively appeared in the music video for The Lonely Island's "I Just Had Sex" together with Jessica Alba.[32] 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.[33] The film grossed a worldwide total of $219,851,172.[34] In 2011 she was featured in the annual TIME magazine 100 influential people.[35] Additionally, AskMen.com named her the most desirable woman of 2011[36] and People magazine named her one of 2012's Most Beautiful at Every Age.[37]

In 2012, she starred in Oliver Stone's Savages alongside Taylor Kitsch, Aaron Johnson, Salma Hayek, and John Travolta. Lively replaced Jennifer Lawrence as Ophelia, after the latter dropped out to do The Hunger Games. HitFix film critic Drew McWeeny praised Lively's performance, which he described as "smart and sad precisely because she plays O as such a broken, needy little soul".[38] 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.[39]

2013–present: Continued career
In October 2013, Lively was named the new face of L'Oreal, marking her first major makeup campaign.[40]

Lively starred in the film The Age of Adaline (2015), opposite Michiel Huismanand Harrison Ford, playing a woman who "stops aging after recovering from a near-fatal accident."[41] The film was a modest commercial success, grossing $65.7 million from a production budget of $25 million.[42]

In 2016, Lively starred in the survival horror film The Shallows. It received mostly positive reviews and Lively's performance was praised by critics.

In 2018, Lively starred in the mystery-thriller A Simple Favor, alongside Anna Kendrick and Henry Golding, and directed by Paul Feig.[43] The film was released on September 14 and Lively's performance was acclaimed.[44] In 2017, she was announced to play the lead of The Rhythm Section, the film adaptation of the Mark Burnell novel of the same name, produced by Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, and directed by Reed Morano.[45] The film is set for release from Paramount Pictures on February 22, 2019.[46]

Celebrity homemaker
Lively describes herself as a "foodie and cook,"[47] and has said Martha Stewartis her "idol." She is also a fan of Nigella Lawson's work.[48] In 2008, Lively baked a cake with Stewart during an episode of The Martha Stewart Show.[49] In 2009, Lively stated that she "hoped one day to have an interior decorating company," citing her love for antiques and fascination with "colors and textures and layering things."[12] In 2010, she attended a tailor-made workshop at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and has spoken of her desire to return to the culinary school for further instruction.[50]

Also in 2010, Lively spent an evening working as a pastry chef at the renowned Per Se in New York City.[51] She has remarked that, when travelling, she always takes cookery classes to immerse herself in the local culture.[52][53] In 2010 and again in 2011, Lively spoke publicly of her desire to become a restaurateur.[54][55]In 2011, she created a s'mores cupcake to be sold at Sprinkles bakeries.[56] 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.[57] In 2013, she filmed a cooking segment for Vogue's website, demonstrating how to make a brie pastry.[58] In 2014, she launched Preserve, a digital magazine and e-commerce website with hand-made one-of-a-kind items all selected by Lively;[59] on October 9, 2015, Lively closed the site, stating that it had been launched before it was ready, and that she plans to rebuild and relaunch it properly.[60]

Advocacy
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.[61] 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.[62]

Personal life
Lively with future husband Ryan Reynolds, promoting Green Lantern at Comic-Con 2010.

Lively first met Ryan Reynolds in early 2010 while filming Green Lantern, in which he co-starred.[63] In October 2011, Hollyscoop reported they were dating.[64] The couple married on September 9, 2012, at Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.[65] They have two daughters, James, born in 2014[66][67] and Inez in 2016.[68]