The Internet has been divided on whether Blake Lively displayed a bossy attitude or simply acted as a confident leader at the Met Gala, which took place on Monday, May 4, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. In a viral video clip that appeared on Instagram, Lively, who is 38 years old and a mother of four, was seen giving instructions to three men on how to carry her multicolored pastel archival Atelier Versace gown, which had an abundance of ruffles, up the stairs.
Fans have expressed their opinions on the viral video, with some suggesting that Lively came across as demanding while others saw her as merely delegating tasks effectively. One of the men she interacted with was her cousin, William McAlpin, as reported by The New York Post’s Page Six.
In response to the video, one critic remarked, “It looks like she’s bossing everyone around. Mean girl energy.” On the other hand, another user offered a different perspective, stating, “It looks to me like she’s instructing the people who are hired to assist celebrities on the carpet how to help or not help with her dress. Not mean or bossy just delegating like a boss.”
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni reached a verdict in their legal dispute. Hours before the event, Lively and Baldoni settled their lawsuit, which had lasted for two years. The case alleged that Baldoni sexually harassed Lively during the filming of their 2024 romantic drama, It Ends With Us. Following this, Baldoni filed a lawsuit against The New York Times, claiming libel and false light invasion of privacy after the publication released an article about the original lawsuit.
At the Met Gala, the Gossip Girl star was noted for displaying a “reserved sadness” and “signs of discomfort.” Her husband, Ryan Reynolds, whom she married in 2012, did not attend the event. According to behavioral analyst Traci Brown, Lively seemed to be radiating happiness with a big open-mouth smile, but there were moments where her smile was closed-mouth and did not fully reach her eyes.
Brown stated, “There’s a reserved sadness there. Could these be a reflection of the settlement? Absolutely. Could it be something else? Yes.” She added, “It wouldn’t be too far of a leap to guess we’re seeing some reflections about the settlement.”
Body language expert Darren Stanton observed mixed signals from Lively at the event. He told Page Six, “Blake Lively appears to be projecting confidence, with her hands on her hips to make herself appear larger — a classic body language signal of self-assurance. However, there are subtle signs of discomfort we can see in the footage.”
Stanton found her smiles to be inconsistent and noted that they lacked “genuine happiness.” He mentioned that it was out of character for Lively to seem slightly tense in the moment — not angry, but not as calm as usual.
