Blake Lively looked far from amused when husband Ryan Reynolds made a joke about her legal battle with Justin Baldoni during a Saturday Night Live appearance this week.
But was her reaction all part of the comedy?
Reynolds' remark was made less than two months after Gossip Girl alum Blake Lively filed a legal complaint against her 2024 It Ends With Us cast-mate, Justin Baldoni.
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In the shock lawsuit, the 37-year-old actress alleged both that Baldoni exhibited overly-sexualised behaviour towards her whilst on the set of the Coleen Hoover novel adaptation, and that he and his team later orchestrated a smear campaign against her.
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48-year-old Reynolds was also mentioned in Lively's complaint, after she alleged that her co-star made several public inquisitions about their sex life whilst filming.
This resulted in the couple (led by Lively) handing staff on set a list of demands about intimacy protocol and workplace behaviour, which are also referenced in her December complaint.
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Baldoni subsequently denied all allegations being made against him, and has since sued Lively himself for defamation and extortion.
The actor also refuted claims of angst between he and the Deadpool front-man earlier this month (3 Feb), by sharing a series of text messages and claiming the pair enjoyed an amicable relationship whilst he worked alongside Lively.
Naturally, therefore, the fact that the legal dispute is still very much ongoing left millions of telly-watchers blindsided this weekend, when Reynolds made a joke about it during an appearance on the 50th anniversary edition of Saturday Night Live.
Here's a clip of the comment, for reference:
In the viral video, Reynolds can be seen in the audience with wife Lively, before hosts Amy Poehler and Tina Fey give the pair a shout-out.
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He then stands whilst Poehler exclaims: "Oh, hi, Ryan Reynolds. Ryan Reynolds, how is it going?"
With an awkward expression, Reynolds then replies, 'Great... why? What have you heard?', before Lively's shocked face shoots upwards in his direction.
The joke itself has stirred up global controversy, with many wondering whether its timing or circumstances were appropriate.
The clip has also somewhat divided viewers in another sense, however, with some under the impression that Lively had no idea what her husband had planned, and others claiming she'd been in on it.
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Sharing a photo on X of the actress' face before and after the remark, one viewer jibed: "Blake Lively’s expression here says it all."
They added: "That did not seem like a planned expression."
After the clip was later shared on Instagram, another viewer claimed: "Blake’s face said that she didn’t know that joke was happening."
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"Wait I hope Blake was acting.." a third admitted.
"Blake seen a ghost for a second lol," another joked.
"You know they had a fight in the car on the way home," a fifth continued.
Others are convinced, however, that Lively's response was perfectly-timed, and believe there's simply no way the married two didn't orchestrate the controversial attempt at humour together.
"it’s a skit. She’s an actress," one defended her online.
Another hit back at comments, adding: "It’s called good acting genius. Would be sh*tty acting if you can tell it was planned."
"She either a great actress or not aware of the joke at all," another, seemingly stuck-in-the-middle viewer, continued.
Topics: Celebrity, US News, Justin Baldoni, Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, TV And Film
Rhianna Benson