Blake Lively has credited her children as her "lifeline" over the past turbulent year

Blake Lively attends the 'It Ends With Us' premiere
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Blake Lively has been front and centre this year. And from the It Ends With Us drama to her legal battle with former co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, she has been the subject of non-stop headlines.

As Lively remains in a complicated legal battle, with a trial officially set for March 2026, she has reportedly been leaning on her family. And among the loved ones stepping up for her are said to be her husband Ryan Reynolds and their four children, James, 10, Inez, 8, Betty, 5 and Olin, 2.

This is something that the 37-year-old actress opened up about this week, crediting her kids for being her "lifeline" over the past turbulent year.

"It’s no surprise, I have had a pretty intense year," Lively explained during a recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, while promoting her new film, Another Simple Favor. "And they’re just my lifeline.

"No matter what day I am having, I have to be Disneyland every day for them, and so it's the best," she continued, later adding: "this year has been full of the highest highs and the lowest lows of my life."

"All my eggs are in one basket, and that’s my family," Lively has previously explained to Marie Claire back in 2016. "That’s where my heart is. That’s where my everything is. That’s the thing that I feel most protective of and the thing that I feel is the most exposed when I feel exploited.

"My parents, my siblings, my daughter, my husband, my nieces and nephews - that’s where I get very mama bear. There are two ways to look at it. You could look at it as, ‘That’s what I’m vulnerable about.’ But also, ‘That’s the thing that excites me in the world.’ So I don’t really think about them as my vulnerability as much as I think about them as my reason for everything."

"Family is at the root of everything that I do and it’s also at the root of everything that I create," Lively added via Forbes in 2022. "So, whenever I create something, I create something with family in mind, because that’s just how I live."

Well, that's that.

Jenny Proudfoot
Features Editor

Jenny Proudfoot is an award-winning journalist, specialising in lifestyle, culture, entertainment, international development and politics. She has worked at Marie Claire UK for seven years, rising from intern to Features Editor and is now the most published Marie Claire writer of all time. She was made a 30 under 30 award-winner last year and named a rising star in journalism by the Professional Publishers Association.