Blake Lively was born in Los Angeles on August 25, 1987. Her father was an actor and director, and her mother was a talent scout. During her junior year of high school, Lively had an audition for and landed a major role in the 2005 blockbuster chick flick "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants." Two years later, Lively landed her most famous role to date on the CW's hit teen drama "Gossip Girl."

Despite strong pressure from her older siblings to ditch school and embark on an acting career, Lively initially expressed no interest in acting. Instead, she had her own dreams of attending Stanford University. Nevertheless, sensing her star potential, her older brother Eric relentlessly pushed Blake Lively to try auditioning. "He was trying to get me to make life decisions at 15!" she recalls. He then began contacting agents and telling them about his beautiful, talented younger sister.

During her junior year of high school, at the age of 17, Lively finally consented to attend a few auditions. She found nearly instant success. After only a few months of auditioning, she landed a major role in the 2005 blockbuster "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," which filmed during the summer between her junior and senior years at Burbank High. Her performance earned her a Teen Choice Award nomination for Breakout Movie Star.

After filming "Traveling Pants," Lively returned to Burbank for her senior year and graduated in 2005. After finishing her diploma, she immediately returned to acting, starring opposite Justin Long and Jonah Hill in the 2006 comedy "Accepted." A year later, in 2007, Lively landed her most famous role to date on the CW's hit tee- drama "Gossip Girl." The show follows a cohort of privileged teenagers on New York's Upper East Side, with Lively playing the lead role of Serena van der Woodsen, a stylish blonde and (somewhat) reformed party girl.

With her dazzling good looks, natural acting talent and devoted backing from devoted Gossip Girl fans, Lively seemed to be on the verge of breaking out as a top-flight movie star. She displayed a grittier side in her role as a young mother in Ben Affleck's crime thriller "The Town." Both the film and Lively's performance drew widespread critical acclaim.

The following year, Lively co-starred with Ryan Reynolds in the film "Green Lantern," a big screen take on the classic comic book series.

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