Blake Lively has been keeping a low profile this season, following a turbulent few months in the spotlight.
The 37-year-old actress received negative attention after the controversial release of It Ends With Us, with the Colleen Hoover adaptation widely criticised for the lack of conversation around domestic abuse. And with reports of a rumoured rift over creative direction between producer Lively and director Justin Baldoni, Lively in particular came under fire.
The Gossip Girl star was criticised for her “tone deaf” media approach – not giving enough attention to the theme of domestic violence in her interviews, and publicising her new haircare brand in the film’s run-up. And after the resurfacing of past controversial interviews by the actress, corners of the internet called for her “cancellation”.
Lively has kept a low profile amid the online backlash, choosing not to address the drama, and even pausing her social media activity for six weeks until the hysteria died down.
And while the actress returned to Instagram last month, uploading her first post on the platform since the drama unfolded, she had turned off her comments.
This week, Lively made another major change to her social media activity as she appeared to turn her comments back on, allowing limited accounts to write messages on a very special upload.
The post in question? An informative message ahead of the US Presidential Election next week, encouraging followers to vote.
“Spent Halloween participating in democracy & equality for women! 🇺🇸,” Lively captioned the carousel of images. “Getting an ‘I Voted’ sticker was more exciting than candy 🎃❤️🤍💙.”
She continued: “Most places are open for early voting!!! Slide to know your voting rights and who to text for information on if you’re registered, where your polling location is and more. ❤️🤍💙🇺🇸 ❤️🤍💙”
The post proved popular, raking in over 700k likes, with husband Ryan Reynolds even sharing it to his Instagram feed.
“Ryan is deeply invested in helping Blake navigate this situation,” sources explained to Life and Style Magazine earlier this year. “With his keen eye for branding and his ability to turn any situation into a winning moment, Ryan is working closely with Blake’s team to reframe her public image in light of these troubling allegations.”
We will continue to update this story.
