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Blake Lively has been braving the storm while keeping her loved ones close.
Specifically, the 37-year-old actress – who has made headlines this week after a judge tossed the $400 million defamation and extortion lawsuit filed by her It Ends with Us collaborator Justin Baldoni – has been seen with her niece Kate Johnson, 20.
With that in mind, Daily Mail is taking a closer look at the young protégé of the embattled A-lister, who has been a stalwart presence for her amid the fallout of the litigation against her and husband Ryan Reynolds.
Kate’s mother is Blake’s older sister Robin Lively, 53, while her father is Bart Johnson, 54; the married couple are also parents to two sons: Baylen, 22, and Wyatt, 17.
Kate accompanied her famous aunt on Monday to the high profile event – which Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman dubbed a stop on Blake’s ‘false victory tour’ – as the two closely resembled one another with nearly identical hairstyles.
The two wore outfits that were similar in style, with Blake donning a lace off-white gown while Kate opted for a beige coat with white top and checkered brown pants.
Blake Lively, 37, has been bringing her niece Kate Johnson, 20, into the limelight with her, amid her ongoing litigation with Justin Baldoni, 41. They were pictured at the Tribeca Festival Artists Dinner in NYC after Blake was cleared in a $400 million suit brought against her
Kate accompanied her famous aunt on Monday to the high profile event as the two closely resembled one another with nearly identical hairstyles
Kate was previously seen on the April 27 red carpet for the premiere of Blake’s comeback comedy Another Simple Favor in in New York City.
This came during a time of great speculation on Lively – not just from the Baldoni camp but how she interacted with her collaborators on the Amazon comedy, including director Paul Feig and Lively’s costar (and fellow A-lister) Anna Kendrick.
Johnson also attended the premiere for Reynolds’ blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine last summer, sharing a series of snaps from the summer night on Instagram.
She was ‘so proud of Reynolds’ and everyone involved with the blockbuster action comedy – which included a cameo from Lively and a character alleged to be a mean-spirited parody of Baldoni.
On her Instagram page under the handle @cakey.johnson, Johnson has just under 6500 followers – a number sure to swell given the ongoing attention toward Lively, who has 43.4 million followers.
Among the 351 accounts, Kate follows includes her aunt Lively and her beauty brand Blake Brown; Reynolds and associates such as Deadpool director Sean Levy and the Wrexham AFC soccer team the actor owns a piece of.
Kate also appears to have an affinity for the music of the 1980s, as artist accounts she follows includes those of Wham!, Michael Jackson, Tears For Fears, Elton John and Paul McCartney.
Amid a smattering of bad publicity stemming from It Ends With Us, Blake appears to be a loving aunt to her young niece
Kate was previously seen on the April 27 red carpet for the premiere of Blake’s comeback comedy Another Simple Favor in in New York City at Jazz at Lincoln Center
Kate’s mother is Blake’s older sister Robin Lively, 53, and she has two brothers
Kate also follows beloved social media personality Lester ‘Beetlejuice’ Green, who was first seen as a regular guest on Howard Stern’s radio show.
Daily Mail reached out to Kate via Instagram for comment on Monday on a previous item that implied Blake had ignored her while on a shopping outing over the weekend.
Lively had been accused of behaving rudely and ‘entitled’ amid a trip to a NYC shop in an incendiary Tiktok video.
TikTok user @imlandonanne claimed Saturday she had crossed paths with the star while shopping at luxury retailer Stoney Clover Lane – and declared she had been shocked by Lively’s alleged ‘not nice’ behavior.
‘I don’t know how she has any fans anymore,’ Landon said of the It Ends With Us actress, adding their encounter made for a ‘horrible experience.’
Landon claimed that Lively had been ‘ignoring’ all of the other people at the retailer – which included her kids and her niece Kate Johnson.
She concluded: ‘If anyone is still a fan of Blake Lively, I think recheck your decision on that because she’s not very nice to the common people.’
Stoney Clover Lane, an upstart brand, describes itself as ‘a luxury lifestyle & accessories brand designed to bring joy and ease to the everyday. Daily Mail has reached out to reps for Lively and Stoney Clover Lane for further comment on the story but has yet to hear back.
Blake featured her niece Kate Johnson on her Instagram Stories over the weekend. A TikTok user said Blake ignored Kate and everyone else as she rummaged through Stoney Clover
Stoney Clover Lane, an upstart brand, describes itself as ‘a luxury lifestyle & accessories brand designed to bring joy and ease to the everyday
Lively is married to fellow Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds. Pictured April 29 in NYC
Days after the video’s release, it emerged Baldoni’s $400m lawsuit against Lively had been dismissed by a judge, in a move branded a ‘total victory’ by Lively’s lawyers.
The legal drama kicked off in December 2024 when Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment in a lawsuit; while Baldoni accused Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and publicist Leslie Sloane of defamation and extortion.
In her lawsuit, Lively named a number of Baldoni’s collaborators, including his company Wayfarer Studios, the studio’s CEO and financial backer, and PR personnel Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel.
Baldoni subsequently sued the New York Times for $250 million in a defamation claim over a December 21 story titled ‘”We Can Bury Anyone”: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine;’ the newspaper denied the allegations.
Breaking her silence on the bombshell victory on Monday, Lively said: ‘Last week, I stood proudly alongside 19 organizations united in defending women’s rights to speak up for their safety,’ Lively said on Instagram on Monday.
‘Like so many others, I’ve felt the pain of a retaliatory lawsuit, including the manufactured shame that tries to break us.’
The now-deleted clip was first posted on Saturday, two days before the 37-year-old actress scored a huge victory in the $400 million defamation and extortion lawsuit filed by her It Ends with Us collaborator Justin Baldoni – pictured 2023
The motion picture earned $148 million in domestic box office, and $350 million globally
The Los Angeles-born star continued: ‘While the suit against me was defeated, so many don’t have the resources to fight back.’
She vowed that she was ‘more resolved than ever to continue to stand for every woman’s right to have a voice in protecting themselves, including their safety, their integrity, their dignity and their story.’
The Gossip Girl alum wrapped up in thanking those in the public who have supported her amid the turbulent past year.
‘With love and gratitude for the many who stood by me, many of you I know,’ Lively said. ‘Many of you I don’t. But I will never stop appreciating or advocating for you.’
