Hours after settling her years-long legal battle with It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni, Hollywood star Blake Lively made a surprise appearance at the Met Gala on Monday. The actor was photographed waving to the paparazzi and smiling widely on the red carpet of the elite fashion event in New York.
Blake Lively at the Met Gala
Pictures from the red carpet of the 2026 Met Gala showed Blake, 38, arriving at the exclusive event in a full ball gown that erupted in a cloud of pink, purple and yellow tulle. AFP reported that her appearance on the red carpet was a ‘surprise’ as she appeared there just hours after reaching a settlement in her bitter legal battle with fellow actor Justin Baldoni.
On the red carpet, Blake posed for the shutterbugs and even waved to the fans, maintaining a smile throughout the evening.
Blake Lively settles legal battle with Justin Baldoni
Earlier on Monday, Blake and Baldoni released a joint statement announcing they were settling a legal case related to their 2024 film, It Ends With Us. In 2024, after the film’s release, Blake first privately accused Justin Baldoni of sexually harassing her on sets and then sued him for trying to orchestrate a smear campaign against her.
Weeks later, Baldoni countersued Blake and her husband, actor Ryan Reynolds, for defamation and extortion. He accused the couple and their publicist of trying to seize creative control of the movie.
Last year, a federal judge dismissed most of the two actors’ claims, but some claims were set to proceed to trial later this month. However, just two weeks before that, the two actors settled. “It is our sincere hope that this brings closure and allows all involved to move forward constructively and in peace, including a respectful environment online,” the statement further read. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
About the 2026 Met Gala
The Met Gala is a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum’s Costume Institute, and this year has raised a record $42 million (after $31 million in 2025), the museum’s CEO Max Hollein told reporters early Monday. This year’s exhibit juxtaposes elegant fashion looks with paintings and sculpture, celebrating ‘costume art’. “When I think about the show, if there’s one word to describe it, I suppose it would be equitability or equivalency, equivalency between artworks,” the Costume Institute’s curator Andrew Bolton told AFP.