Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds to Skip 2025 Met Gala Amid Legal Battle with Justin Baldoni

Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds will not attend the 2025 Met Gala, marking their continued absence since co-hosting in 2022. Their decision comes as they face an ongoing legal battle with Justin Baldoni.

Written by Sakina Kaukawala , Entertainment Journalist

Published on Mar 23, 2025 | 05:20 AM GMT | 11.7K

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively (via Getty Images)

Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds will not be attending the 2025 Met Gala, Us Weekly confirmed. A source close to the couple explained their absence, saying, “She’s not a Kardashian that goes every year.”

The couple last attended the event in 2022 when they served as co-hosts alongside Regina King and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds have attended the Met Gala multiple times over the years, making their debut as a couple in 2014. However, they have never been annual attendees.

The 2025 Met Gala will take place on May 5, with a theme of Superfine: Tailoring Black Style. This year’s co-chairs include Colman Domingo, Lewis Hamilton, A$AP Rocky, Pharrell Williams, and Anna Wintour, while LeBron James will serve as an honorary chair.

Lively and Reynolds’ decision to skip the event comes as they are involved in a legal dispute with actor and filmmaker Justin Baldoni. Lively starred alongside Baldoni in It Ends With Us, which premiered last summer.

In December 2024, she filed a lawsuit against him, accusing him of sexual harassment and orchestrating a smear campaign against her. Baldoni denied the allegations and filed a $400 million countersuit in January 2025 against Lively, Reynolds, and her publicist, alleging defamation.

Lively and Reynolds both submitted motions to dismiss the lawsuit. Lively’s spokesperson addressed the situation, stating, “The painful reality is that Ms. Lively is not alone in being sued for defamation after speaking up about being sexually harassed at work.”

The statement shed light on California’s AB 933 law, which protects individuals from defamation lawsuits after reporting harassment or discrimination.

Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, responded, calling Lively’s motion “one of the most abhorrent examples of abusing our legal system.” He added, “Laws are not meant to be twisted and curated by privileged elites to fit their own personal agenda.” The trial is scheduled for next year.

Lively and Reynolds have had a strong presence at the Met Gala over the years, though they have not attended consistently. Their first appearance as a couple was in 2014, and they returned in 2017.

In 2018, Lively attended alone. Their last Met Gala appearance was in 2022, where Lively’s Versace gown made headlines. The gown featured a reversible train, transforming from copper to green in a nod to the Statue of Liberty’s patina.

Although Lively and Reynolds will not be at the Met Gala, they have made public appearances in recent months. In February, they attended SNL50: The Anniversary Special to celebrate Saturday Night Live’s 50th season.