Blake Lively calls latest role ‘a Six Flags female journey’
Blake Lively doesn’t skip a beat when asked about the best compliment she has ever received.
“Someone on social media called me ‘a crown straightener,’ ” says the actor, producer and mother of four. “It’s a woman who straightens the crowns of all of the other women around her.”
Women must sense the support. Lively has gone from “Gossip Girl” to producer and star of the megawatt female-based hit “It Ends With Us.” The film earned over $50 million at the box office last weekend, just a shade less than husband Ryan Reynolds’ blockbuster, “Deadpool & Wolverine.”
Lively’s project is based on Colleen Hoover’s bestseller about love, trust and domestic abuse. The novel has sold over 1 million copies.
“The book resonated with so many people,” the 36-year-old Lively says. “It was so exciting to take on a character so many have connected with, and also a huge responsibility and slightly terrifying. What readers have in their imaginations can feel impossible to meet. Everyone has a bit of a different story in their heads. It was important to honor the fans and the book.”
Lively portrays plays Lily Bloom, a young woman who escapes an abusive childhood and falls in love with a man who turns out to be an abuser.
“Some people will always like a book better than a movie, and some people like a movie better than a book,” Lively says. “I think we did our best to honor the book and honor the fans.”
Lively lives in New York with Reynolds and their four kids: James, 9, Inez, 7, Betty, 4, and Olin, 1.
Her good life tips:
‘Healing and inspiring’
Lively is a huge fan of Hoover’s work. “I read this book and thought, ‘Oh, my God, I love these people in Lily’s life. I was hurt by some of those people. It’s the complexity of the writing. Colleen taps into every human emotion,” she says. “It’s a Six Flags female journey. If a superhero movie was just about human emotions that’s what Colleen Hoover does. Her work is healing and inspiring.”
Love your work
Lively says that she’s grateful for her career, especially “It Ends With Us.” “I loved the character of Lily so much,” she says. “And I think it’s really important to love the character and love your work no matter what you do. It’s the best if you feel it in your heart and soul.”
Family is everything
“I’m a mama bear. All my eggs are in one basket, and that’s my family. That’s where my heart is. I’m all-in,” she says. “Raising my kids is the thing that excites me most in the world. They are my reason for everything.”
As for having four little ones, Lively embraces the chaos. “Having a baby is just living in the unexpected,” she says.
Love of fashion
“Fashion is something I’ve always appreciated,” Lively says. “My mom would always make clothes for me, and she’s an amazing dress designer. I love to look at fashion and how the designers mix patterns and texture. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that I have a job where I get to wear the most beautiful clothes in the world. I get to play dress-up almost every single day. The sad part is giving the clothes back.”
Female friendships
Lively says that female friendships, including her bond with bestie Taylor Swift, are one of the most important parts of her life. “The women in my life are everything to me, from my mom to my children to my mother-in-law,” she says. Good friendships are about loving others, Lively says, but also a reminder to find peace and love within ourselves.
Strive for healthy
Lively says it’s OK to cheat on your healthy-eating intentions. “I think in food,” she acknowledges with a laugh. She says that her favorite scene in “It Ends With Us” was “the day I had blueberry cinnamon rolls. Another day, I had a Philly cheesesteak and a tub of ice cream. I thought, ‘You just ate like an idiot.’ But you go back to the healthy stuff the next day.”
Listen to Mom
Lively knows the secret of her success: advice given to her long ago by her mother, Elaine. “Whatever it was, whether I was doing a school project or something for me, I was doing something creative,” she shares. “She would always say, ‘You can’t mess it up.’ … I mean, I could mess it up really severely, but just the fact that she told me I couldn’t almost made me feel like I couldn’t. So, I took risks and would do things I otherwise would have limited myself. My mom taught me as a kid that you can’t ever let anyone stop you.”
