Blake Ellender Lively
Blake Ellender Lively[3] (born Blake Ellender Brown;[4] August 25, 1987) is an American actress, model and celebrity homemaker. She starred as Serena van der Woodsen in the CW teen drama series Gossip Girl, and has appeared in such films as The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, The Town, Green Lantern, Acceptedand Savages. Following her 2012 marriage to actor Ryan Reynolds, the couple relocated to Bedford, a suburb inWestchester County, New York.
Early life[edit]
Blake Ellender Brown was born in
Tarzana, Los Angeles, California[5][6] to actor
Ernie Lively (né Ernest W. Brown) and his wife, Elaine (née McAlpin). She was named after her grandmother's brother.
[7] Blake and her four older siblings/half-siblings were raised as
Southern Baptists.
[8][9] She has an older brother,
Eric, two half-sisters,
Lori and
Robyn,
[10] and a half-brother,
Jason. Both of her parents and all of her siblings are, or have been, in the entertainment industry.
[11] During her childhood, her parents took her with them 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 classes helped her learn the "drills" of acting and gain confidence as she got older.
[9][11]
Lively began her acting career at age 11, when she appeared in the 1998 film
Sandman, which was directed by Lively's father. She describes her role as a "bit part".
[14] 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.
[15]
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.
[16] 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.”
[17] MovieLine.com praised her performance in the film and credited it as having been her "breakthrough role".
[18]
In 2009 , Lively reprised her role in the sequel,
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2. Similar to the first film, Lively was positively received by critics.
[22][23]As of November 2009, the film had earned over $44 million at the box office.
[24] In 2009, Lively appeared as Gabrielle DiMarco, a minor role in the romantic comedy,
New York, I Love You, a sequel to the 2006 film
Paris, je t'aime. Despite positive critical reception from critics, the film did not fare well at the box office.
[25][26]
One of Lively's most acclaimed roles to date is her supporting role playing the younger version of the title character in
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee(2009).
[27] Paul Byrnes, of the
Brisbane Times, described Lively's performance in the film as being "sensational".
[28]
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.
[29] The film, which stars
Ben Affleck, was released in the United States on September 17, 2010.
In 2011, she was featured in the annual
TIME magazine 100 influential people.
[34] Additionally,
AskMen.com named her the most desirable woman of 2011
[35] and
People magazine named her one of 2012's Most Beautiful at Every Age.
[36]
In October 2013, Lively was named the new face of
L'Oreal, marking her first major makeup campaign.
[39] In the same month, Lively was cast with
Ellen Burstyn in the film
The Age of Adaline.
[40]
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