For a while now, we’ve largely opted out of discussing the daily/weekly legal issues involved with Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni’s multiple lawsuits and cases. Most of Lively and Baldoni’s issues are going to be dealt with in court, but that hasn’t stopped both of them from trying to play this out in the court of public opinion. It got exhausting in a hurry, the flurry of briefings and “exclusives” to various friendly outlets.
Now, all that being said, we will continue to follow and discuss one particular thread, which is one of the juiciest gossip stories we’ve had in a while. That thread: that Blake Lively has apparently been leveraging her friendship with Taylor Swift for some time, and it took this Baldoni situation for Taylor to realize just how thoroughly Blake has been using her. Taylor distanced herself from Blake as soon as the lawsuits blew up and Blake’s texts came out, where Blake referred to Taylor as one of her “dragons.” Taylor and Blake haven’t been seen or photographed together since, although to be fair, Taylor has been in the wind for months after her tour ended. There were some curious gossip stories back in February that Taylor basically hit pause on her friendship with Blake, and that Taylor absolutely does not appreciate being dragged into Blake’s mess. Last week, there were more stories about how Taylor will likely be subpoenaed and deposed, and then Blake’s damage control followed that. Well, a new wrinkle: Travis Kelce has unfollowed Ryan Reynolds.
Taylor Swift’s drama with Blake Lively seems to be heating up — and Travis Kelce’s riding hard for his girl, hitting unfollow on the actress’ hubby Ryan Reynolds’ IG.
When you search for Travis, his name’s nowhere to be found on Ryan’s IG. Not sure when Travis smashed that unfollow button, but it’s pretty fresh — and for what it’s worth, Ryan’s still following him.
FYI, Blake’s still got Taylor on her list, but not Travis. As for Taylor, she’s following literally no one at all.
Page Six followed up on TMZ’s reporting, saying that they’ve exclusively learned that Kelce “unfollowed Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds, on Instagram because of the ‘It Ends With Us’ actress’s messy legal nightmare.” Page Six’s sources also said that Taylor feels like a “pawn” in Blake’s situation. So, yeah, I think it’s a big deal. I have believed for some time that Taylor is purposefully withholding her “endorsement” of Blake and Blake’s lawsuits, just as I’ve believed that Blake’s team has been furiously doing damage control on Taylor’s reluctance to be seen with Blake or seen on Blake’s side. And now this – Travis is getting involved and sending a message that he’s also not f–king with Ryan or Blake. It’s interesting.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.
- Kansas City Chiefs media day during Super Bowl LIX, New Orleans, LA, USA – 03 Feb 2025 Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce87 talks to the media. New Orleans LA USA, UK NEWSPAPERS OUT Copyright: xx,Image: 960018214, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: imago is entitled to issue a simple usage license at the time of provision. Personality and trademark rights as well as copyright laws regarding art-works shown must be observed. Commercial use at your own risk., Model Release: no, Credit line: IMAGO/Avalon
- Kansas City Chiefs media day during Super Bowl LIX, New Orleans, LA, USA – 03 Feb 2025 Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce87 talks to the media. New Orleans LA USA, UK NEWSPAPERS OUT Copyright: xx,Image: 960018220, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: imago is entitled to issue a simple usage license at the time of provision. Personality and trademark rights as well as copyright laws regarding art-works shown must be observed. Commercial use at your own risk., Model Release: no, Credit line: IMAGO/Avalon
- Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds during the TIME 100 Most Influential People in the World Gala, held at the Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, Thursday April 24, 2025. Jennifer Graylock-Graylock.com,Image: 991972363, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Jennifer Graylock-Graylock.com, Model Release: no, Credit line: Jennifer Graylock-Graylock.com/Avalon
- New York, NY – Superstar couple Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce arrive for a double date with famous friends Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds at The Corner Store in Soho this evening. Pictured: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively BACKGRID USA 11 OCTOBER 2024 BYLINE MUST READ: BlayzenPhotos / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
- New York, NY – Superstar couple Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce arrive for a double date with famous friends Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds at The Corner Store in Soho this evening. Pictured: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce BACKGRID USA 11 OCTOBER 2024 BYLINE MUST READ: BlayzenPhotos / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
- New York, NY – Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce step out for a double date with Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds at The Corner Store in Soho, New York. Pictured: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce BACKGRID USA 11 OCTOBER 2024 BYLINE MUST READ: JosiahW / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
- New York, NY – Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce step out for a double date with Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds at The Corner Store in Soho, New York. Pictured: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce BACKGRID USA 11 OCTOBER 2024 BYLINE MUST READ: Tatiana / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
- Sony Pictures Entertainment World premiere of It Ends With Us at AMC Lincoln Square Theatre Featuring: Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds Where: New York, New York , United States When: 06 Aug 2024 Credit: Roger Wong/INSTARimages
- TIME100 Most Influential people in the World Gala, held at the Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Centre Featuring: Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds Where: New York, New York, United States When: 24 Apr 2025 Credit: Jennifer Graylock/INSTARimages
I am officially too old to know the significance of “unfollowing” someone — it is so easy to scroll past content you don’t like so it feels just so performative….which is maybe the point?
@wendy its the same as saying “i don’t keep up with whatever she does”
You’ve actually hit on why it’s significant. It IS easy to just scroll by content you don’t like, or even to hide content of someone you follow. Which means choosing to unfollow them is a public statement. Because you could have let sleeping dogs lie and chose not to. It’s the millennial/ gen z equivalent of a socially cutting someone.
In the gilded age a cut direct was pointedly ignoring someone you associated with in public. In 2025, it’s this.
Given that Taylor and Travis seem to be PR/lawyered up and relatively mature about things, I like to think they’ve been advised to (virtually) distance themselves. That way at least Travis can claim he’s not actually that close to Ryan and hopefully avoid getting officially (or unofficially) sucked into the legal drama down the road.
So this all just… let’s call each other names and run to court ’cause we’re each more right?
This reminds me of a case my brother told me about. Turns out you can actually hire lawyers to make your opening/closing remarks. In this case, those lawyers each insulted the other and they both ran to the bar to open complaints because, well, ‘the other guy is a poopy head!’ (I may be summarizing!)
I’m sick of this mess, they’re both wrong, they’re both idiots, and they can both just… go away. I tried to look at this from an impartial point of view but… I think I summarized it.
For Blake, yeah she could have just ignored it. But for Justine. This is his livelihood. He has already lost other jobs because of this. And if he does lose this case his career is over. That’s why he is fighting it. He isn’t a big enough star yet to allow this to follow him around. That’s why this all matters.
What has Baldoni done except listen to his attorneys. The only reason we see Freedman is because he is defending his client against things not true. And creators on the clock app are doing some great work in looking into this and Swifty is not even mentioned.
Travis never followed RR.
that would kill the whole narrative wouldn’t it? Is there a history or do people randomly check on who famous people follow?
I saw screenshots of it that he was following him? Even some swifties were suspecting T&T dating before they went public, because Travis followed Ryan.
I’m sure Taylor doesn’t like being brought into someone else’s lawsuit. Taylor is pretty protective of her own brand and this is not to her liking. I think Taylor and Travis have had some downtime and they are seeing things that they agree can be a problem. Maybe they will be getting rid of anything or anyone that they feel will involve them in a big mess. Now they both need to readdress the friendship with Mahomes and his maga wife. That one may prove tougher for Travis to end.
I can see Taylor keeping her distance for legal reasons. It’s possible she’ll get called for a deposition right? It could be a strategic move as opposed to a fracture in their friendship. But mostly I don’t know either way. It’s all sources saying which seems pretty unreliable.
I hope this is just an agreed-upon move because of Taylor’s legal team. Otherwise, honestly it is sad. Taylor has been friends with Blake and Ryan for years and godmother to their children. She used their names in her song too. That was all when Ryan had great PR in the industry and he said so many nice things about Taylor in his interviews. Now they are under fire and Taylor is keeping her distance because Blake used her name as intimidation to a man like that? I am also gonna say, they had a People article where sources said Taylor & Blake are alright and they talked. This happened after deposition news. So, it feels to me, this is just legal advice Taylor is following.
Taylor Swift has spoken repeatedly about when she was groped by a gross radio dj, she told his boss, he got fired, and that pos sued HER for millions. She had 7 witnesses, a photo, and she still had to go through what she described as a dehumanizing court case. She counter-sued for $1.
She won her $1. He lost.
And she noted that she was famous and had power, and again a photo and 7 witnesses- and people still doubted her. She talked about how many women don’t have witnesses to sexual harassment and assault.
My point is, while she is wary or people using her/her power/her fame for themselves, she is also the godmother of Blake’s children, and i am not sure she is walking away from that friendship. While i am sure she is less than thrilled about being used by both sides. I think they’ll be okay.
We have not heard a lot from Blake’s actual witnesses because that is what they are supposed to do- shut up until their deposition/trial testimony. Speaking publicly is frowned upon and poor legal strategy.
The only “win” the gossip gets is public opinion.
A public who is salivating to tear yet another woman down.
She’s rude, she’s calculating, or my favorite- she fell for the gross guy, and when he rejected her- he paid someone hundreds of thousands of dollars to smear her, just in case she accused him of grossness.
see also: Taylor Swift singing: The Man.
I read that theory from a grown woman last night: Blake fell in love with that gross man and when Ryan caught her, she had to cry sexual harassment. It feels like all the progress of the last decade about not vilifying women got backwards after Depp case. It is weirdo world out there.
Just a quick note, Taylor didn’t even make the complaint. After her assault, she was shocked and told her mother what happened. Her mother called the boss and told him his employee groped her daughter like any mother would.
All of this stuff keeps cropping up in PageSix, the DF, and TMZ. I cannot imagine they’re capable of an unbiased viewpoint on this, and given Baldoni’s hires, this looks sus. I also side-eye the timing. Anytime Blake and/ or Ryan do something, there’s a ton of negative stories on websites like these. I really appreciate your comments, Ariel.
Were they ever following each other? — Taylor being annoyed that she’s been dragged into this is funny to me because she dated a teenager that she had to sign out of school on occasion — she dated a misogynist who hated Black women specifically. Birds of a feather.
Do we know for sure that he had followed Ryan previously? And the other option would be that Travis and Taylor broke up. That would also explain Blake not following Travis but following Taylor.
It would be hilarious if this was Traylor soft launching a split that no one gets because of the Blake situation.
I just had a look on instagram, Travis doesn’t even appear to follow Taylor.
Never has, and vice versa. They rarely if ever like the other’s posts either – precisely to avoid stuff about how they’re on the rocks because of missing liking a post here or there, I imagine. Smart, I think.
These days Taylor just flat out doesn’t follow anyone, posts mainly work-related content, posts personal things/makes personal comments once in a blue moon, and likes occasional posts about babies, engagements and weddings and Travis breaking NFL records.
Per the Swiftie Bureau of Investigation, he hasn’t unliked anyone else he follows connected to Taylor (like Cara Delevingne for example), and nobody else in Taylor’s life has unliked him. Except maybe for Blake. The Swifties did discover her long time interior designers have recently started following him though which has them all excited about them setting up a home together…
Thanks for that, I assumed that was the case!
Taylor Swift via Tree Paine isn’t leaking to Page Six as it’s Justin Baldoni and Scooter Braun’s tabloid of choice (besides meninist TMZ). Likes/Unlikes/Unfollows Gossip is generally poor gossip hygiene, like Bump Watch and Ring Watch. Who knows. It remains to be seen. Celebrities know their every like, unlike, follow, and unfollow is watched and documented; considering how often unfollows happen, it seems celebrities don’t care about the gossip from insta finger mistakes or whims? I don’t know. If Taylor Swift is never ever seen with Blake Lively again, then it means something. If she engages with Blake Lively or Ryan Reynolds any time in the future, it means nothing. I am hesitant to assign meaning to Unfollow Gossip because it usually doesn’t pan out. Bieber unfollowed his wife and is still married to her, you know?
I also just find it hard to take seriously the ambiguous social media activity of a guy who looks like a frat bro Pitbull fan. Travis Kelce just partied with Justin Timberlake, he is deliberately publicly unserious. Especially when it comes to business and PR, privately I think Travis much smarter than he lets on.
I still think Taylor is privately supporting Blake and predictably distancing herself from the case because Taylor Swift Inc. comes before friends, anyone. I wonder how Blake privately feels about Taylor publicly distancing herself from her. My guess is Blake is understanding to Taylor but I wonder if she really would wish for Taylor just to be photographed taking her out to dinner. Would there really be legal repercussions to Taylor taking Blake out to dinner amid the lawsuit? Justin Baldoni isn’t distancing himself from other people named in the suit, like Jamey Heath, Steve Sarowitz, etc..
I have been binge watching any and all BBC/ITV historic costume dramas I can find lately. (Currently working through Dickens after finishing Jane Austen). Times change. Fashions change. Some fundamentals don’t. Social snubbing has always existed and this is the modern equivalent. Taylor is pissed or she would have arranged a pap stroll with RR and BL to change the Taylor dumped Blake narrative.
Binged Wolf Hall. The prime example of Thomas Cromwell being snubbed was beheading. We haven’t regressed to that point, thank goodness.
Blake and Ryan are problematic and handled this situation terribly but it is also obvious that somebody hired and briefed big social media celebrity hate accounts against Blake. Even big Meghan hate accounts that we all know from twitter are criticizing Blake citing sources. So because of that, I am not on the Blake hate train. She doesn’t need to be the perfect victim and she absolutely is the target of a reputational hit job carried out by the Baldoni team.
I agree. You don’t have to like her but this is a targeted hate campaign. I’ll reserve judgment until the lawsuits are done.
Anyone who hires Johnny Depp’s team is suspect to me.
I don’t know that you have to brief against Blake. Please listen to speech at the Time 100. It is completely tone deaf. She talks about her mother, great – then she talks about Gisele Pelicot – who was also being honored, and then goes on to talk about how wonderful it is for women to feel safe at home like she does with RR. It made no sense and was incredibly cringe.
@Eating Popcorn, are you serious? No amount of cringe deserves hundreds of hate videos, posts, which is what is happening. Men literally commit crimes and get less hate. Of course, it is a targeted campaign and not being a perfect victim helps their cause.
Yup, 100% agree with your take Gemini, I’ve been noticing this too.
I’d just like to put in in writing once more that I watched an interview with Kelce years ago and my gut was so turned off that I turned to my husband to tell him that this man was a fake nice guy and his vibe was weird and off. Like the ‘dead eyes’ kind of off. Ever since the Super Bowl I feel like he’s slowly showing his true self and I feel more vindicated by the day.