Whether by choice or by the fickle nature of Hollywood, many teen stars fade into obscurity after their time in the spotlight. Not Blake Lively: since the end of Gossip Girl, the controversial teen soap that catapulted her to fame in the late-2000s, her star has only risen. In 2022, she consistently makes headlines as a kind of well-liked tabloid figure, known for her (often insufferable) red carpet antics with husband Ryan Reynolds, her show-stopping Met Gala outfits, and her friendships with megacelebs like Taylor Swift.
Her veneer of everywoman likeability, though, hides a body of acting work that is confounding and occasionally brilliant – a list of credits far more fascinating than many other actors of Lively’s milieu. Where one might look at her IMDb and expect to see a laundry list of animated films, superhero sequels and bland adaptations (see her husband’s IMDb page), Lively’s filmography is surprisingly unconventional.
