Ryan Reynolds reportedly met with a divorce lawyer this year, and behind the scenes, his marriage to Blake Lively appears to be under strain unlike anything the couple has faced in their 14 years together. The cracks, according to multiple reports and online speculation, trace back to the storm surrounding Lively’s film It Ends With Us and her legal battle with her co-star Justin Baldoni. . Lively starred opposite Baldoni, who also directed the film, which was released in 2024.
Almost immediately after her casting was announced in 2023, some fans criticized how she was chosen for the role and how she looked on set. That online criticism did not fade once production began. It moved behind the scenes and reportedly contributed to tension on set, which would later explode into public view. During the film’s promotional tour, fans noticed that Livelyand Baldoni barely interacted at press events.
Baldoni used his platform to post resources for domestic violence survivors, while Lively was criticized for promoting the film as a lighthearted, feel-good story and for using the press tour to also promote Deadpool, her hair care line, and her non-alcoholic beverage brand. The backlash intensified when a resurfaced 2016 interview showed Lively appearing dismissive toward a question about speaking with domestic violence survivors. When she later posted DV resources, many online dismissed it as too little, too late. .
The feud escalated dramatically when Lively filed a legal complaint against Baldoni, accusing him of harassment on set and of attempting to damage her reputation to cover it up. Baldoni denied every allegation, saying Lively fabricated the whole dispute to protect her own image and cast him as the villain. He also filed a lawsuit against The New York Times overits coverage of the situation. .
Through this entire public firestorm, Reynolds stood beside his wife. He defended her online and appeared with her at events. But reports now suggest the pressure of managing that crisis for over a year has taken a serious toll on him. In recent months, several small details have fueled speculation that the marriage is in trouble.
A caller on a pop culture podcast claimed they saw Reynolds step off an elevator on the 11th floor of a Manhattan building, the floor that reportedly houses the office of a lawyer who calls herself “the best divorce lawyer in New York. ” The claim could not be independently verified. Around the same period, Lively appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers without her wedding ring, and fans noticed. More notably, Reynolds was absent from Lively’s side during her February 11th settlement conference with Baldoni, when sources said she walked in and out alone.
One celebrity gossip outlet claimed Reynolds had made it clear he would not pretend to support her anymore, preferring to protect his own career rather than get further tangled in her legal chaos. Reynolds has not publicly commented on any of these claims, and they remain unconfirmed by any official source
. If the separation becomes real, the stakes are enormous. The couple share four children: James, Inez, Betty, and Olen.
A custody arrangement would be complicated by their demanding filming schedules, which frequently take both parents around the world. Beyond that, their shared assets include multiple homes, business deals, brand partnerships, anda carefully cultivated public image built over more than a decade of joint appearances, interviews, and charity work. Untangling that web would require dividing property, renegotiating or ending business agreements, and deciding how to separate a brand that fans have followed as a pair for years. Insiders reportedly believe Reynolds may be waiting until the Baldoni lawsuit concludes before making any major moves, so he does not add more fuel to an already messy legal situation.
For now, neither Reynolds nor Lively has issued any public confirmation of a divorce. The only signals are silence, a missing ring, a reported visit to a lawyer’s floor, and an empty seat next to her at the settlement. The question of who will break that silence first, and how, remains open.
