Revealed: How former Gossip Girl star is positioning herself in the spotlight amid ex co-star Blake Lively's It Ends With Us bitter legal dispute

Blair Waldorf lived in the shadows of her charismatic best friend Serena van der Woodsen growing up in New York City, but is B finally getting her own back?. Gossip Girl fans will be well aware that Leighton Meester's Blair Waldorf and Blake Lively's Serena van der Woodsen played on-screen best friends for the best part of a decade, with Blake using the show to springboard to stardom while Leighton took a laid-back approach to fame.

However, the roles appear to be reversing, with the 38-year-old Californian actress stepping into the limelight amid Blake's It Ends With Us conflict with the film's director, Justin Baldoni. The drama surrounding the box office hit had divided viewers, with some branding Blake 'tone deaf' and a 'diva'. In contrast, others have accused Justin of maintaining an 'unprofessional' and borderline 'abusive' approach on set.

While Blake defends herself in a bitter legal battle, her former co-star has stepped into the limelight at glamorous film award ceremonies with her husband, Adam Brody, and by signing an impressive Netflix deal. The turn of events follows repeated claims from sources close to the actresses that the pair never saw eye to eye. Gossip Girl's executive producer Joshua Safran told Vanity Fair in 2017, 'Blake and Leighton were not friends.'.

Safran told the publication of their different personalities, explaining: 'Blake is very much in the moment. Blake knows what's happening. You talk to Blake on a very contemporary level, and she would be like, 'I'm doing this thing tonight. Have you been to this restaurant?''.

Leighton, in contrast, had a 'very removed and very quiet' demeanour, and that 'after her scenes were done, she would wander the stage,' Safran said. She's known for her low-key approach to fame, but Leighton Meester is stepping into the limelight with her husband Adam Brody (pictured at the Critics' Choice Awards).

Elsewhere, New York Magazine quoted sources in 2008 saying the duo tended to 'avoid each other like the plague' while filming the series. The rivalry escalated to the point that other Gossip Girl cast members reportedly had to 'choose sides'. A publicist for Lively commented on the professional relationship in Harper's Bazaar in 2017: 'Blake and Leighton have never been best friends, and never professed to be. Blake goes to work, does her job, and goes home.'.

While the cause of the alleged unfriendliness between the pair is unknown, Blake came under fire after making a 'cruel and inappropriate' joke about her Gossip Girl co-star in a resurfaced clip. In a TikTok video from an undated panel discussion, the 37-year-old actress made a cutting remark about Leighton being born in prison.

While sitting next to Leighton and the rest of the Gossip Girl cast, Blake declared: 'Well, some of us started in a cage,' before waving her hand in Leighton's direction. The 38-year-old has made a series of dazzling appearances at recent events, including at the Golden Globes in Beverley Hills last month (pictured).

Gossip Girl fans enjoyed a partial reunion with Kirsten Bell and Leighton at the SAG Awards (pictured). Blake is currently embroiled in a bitter legal battle with It Ends With Us actor and director Justin Baldoni (pictured). Blake noticed the quip failed to amuse the audience and added: 'Come on, it was a joke! Lord have mercy.'.

In the years following Gossip Girl, which concluded in 2012, Blake lived life in the spotlight, marrying Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds, starring in blockbusters such as The Age of Adaline, and mingling with A-Listers like Taylor Swift. Meanwhile, Leighton appeared to take a backseat, with only 7.5 million Instagram followers compared to Blake's 44 million.

She told The Independent in 2023 how the fanfare surrounding Gossip Girl made her 'go inward'. While the public deemed her life private, she doesn't label herself the same, telling the outlet: 'I don't feel that I'm private because I live most of my life not privately. I walk out my front door every day. I live normally and I'm grateful for that. That's a good thing.'.

Nevertheless, the actress, who had two children with Brody, Arlo, nine, and a son, four, whose name is not publicly known, continued to pursue acting roles, but few made for noteworthy hits in the UK. Her upcoming appearance in the popular Netflix show Nobody Want This, starring her husband, 45, and Kristen Bell, 44, will likely change that reality.

Netflix teased the mother-of-two's appearance in the show on X: 'Everybody Wants This! Leighton Meester will guest star in Nobody Wants This Season 2 playing Kristen Bell's middle school nemesis who Joanne crosses paths with as an adult.'. Sources close to the Gossip Girl actors (pictured as Blair Waldorf and Serena van der Woodsen) said the pair were not friends during filming.

Pictured (from back row, L to R): Penn Badgley, Ed Westwick, Taylor Momsen, Blake Lively, Chace Crawford, Leighton Meester in Gossip Girl, season one. Work aside, the 38-year-old has also made a string of public appearances in recent times, including at the Critics' Choice Award, where her husband claimed Best Actor in a Comedy Series for his role in Nobody Wants This.