Reese Witherspoon’s snarky jab at Blake Lively has resurfaced amid the mounting drama over Lively’s legal war with It Ends With Us director Justin Baldoni.
In a now-viral clip, Witherspoon, 49, appears to reference Lively’s 2011 nude photo scandal while taking the stage at that year’s MTV Movie Awards.
Lively was also in attendance at the ceremony – which occurred just days after purported nude images of the Gossip Girl star, 37, were leaked online.
A rep for Lively insisted at the time that the grainy X-rated snaps were ‘100 percent fake’ and that Lively had ‘never taken nude photos of herself.’
But that didn’t stop Witherspoon from seemingly throwing a thinly-veiled dig at Lively as she ranted about ‘bad girls’ in Hollywood during her MTV Generation Award acceptance speech.
‘I get it, girls, that it’s cool to be a bad girl. But it is possible to make it in Hollywood without doing a reality show,’ the Legally Blonde star began.
Reese Witherspoon ‘s snarky jab at Blake Lively has resurfaced amid the mounting drama over Lively’s legal war with It Ends With Us director Justin Baldoni
‘When I came up in this business, if you made a sex tape, you were embarrassed and you hid it under your bed.’
She then added: ‘And if you took naked pictures of yourself on your cell phone, you hide your face, people.’
Viewers were convinced that Witherspoon was taking direct aim at Lively as well as Kim Kardashian, whose infamous 2007 sex tape had catapulted her to stardom.
But a spokesperson for Witherspoon attempted to shutdown the chatter by telling Us Weekly that the actress ‘was absolutely not referencing Blake Lively’ in her speech.
While they’ve never worked together, Lively and Witherspoon have been the subject of wild, unsubstantiated ‘feud’ rumors in recent years.
Last year, it was alleged by Life&Style that the duo were competing to produce their pop superstar pal Taylor Swift’s directorial feature film debut, which was confirmed by Searchlight Pictures in 2022.
‘Blake Lively and Reese Witherspoon both want this job and both of them have deep ties to Taylor,’ a source told the tabloid.
While Swift is ‘close personally to Blake,’ Witherspoon is ‘far more experienced at producing movies’ and even collaborated with Swift on Where the Crawdads Sing (2022).
The resurfaced clip of Witherspoon at the MTV Movie Awards comes amid backlash over Lively’s inclusion on the Time 100 list of the Most Influential People of 2025.
She was placed in the Titans section among heavyweights like tennis legend Serena Williams, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and podcast superstar Joe Rogan.
Lively was given the honor amid her war of lawsuits with Baldoni, who she accused of sexual harassment on set of the 2024 film It Ends With Us. She also accused the actor/director of launching a ‘smear campaign’ against her.
In a now-viral clip , Witherspoon, 49, appears to reference Lively’s 2011 nude photo scandal while taking the stage at that year’s MTV Movie Awards
Lively was also in attendance at ceremony – which occurred just days after purported nude photos of the Gossip Girl star, 37, were leaked online
Baldoni, who has denied Lively’s allegations, responded by launching a $400million defamation against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and Lively’s publicist Leslie Sloane.
Baldoni also filed a $250 million libel lawsuit against the New York Times for its reporting on Lively’s claims. All parties have denied the allegations against them.
Lively and Reynolds are currently trying to get Baldoni’s ‘retaliatory’ lawsuit thrown out.
Lively received a glowing tribute inside the magazine from civil rights attorney Sherrilyn Ifill, who was head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund when Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds gave $1 million to the organization in 2019.
The donation came seven years after the Hollywood couple got married on a former slave plantation in South Carolina, a move that has repeatedly brought them in for fierce criticism and for which Reynolds subsequently apologized.
As news spread that Lively had been named to the vaunted Time list, she and the magazine were both furiously condemned on social media.
‘You pretty screwed yourself @TIME adding Blake Lively for something she did in 2019 to save face from having her wedding at a plantation!’ fumed one use of X, formerly known as Twitter. ‘It is clear to everyone to get on these list you just have to pay a price! @TIME you have NO credibility!’
‘The fact that Blake Lively made the Time 100 list is disgusting!’ wrote another. ‘She & Ryan Reynolds NEVER supported the black community before. Until it was known that they married on a slave plantation! How much did they pay for that article?’
‘Seriously?????????? Lmao this is embarrassing and disgusting of you,’ wrote a third as a fourth alleged: ‘Mainstream pop culture media is totally bought and paid for.’
‘How much is this costing her?’ wondered another X user. ‘Just pay Baldoni the 400 million already, in the Long run it will be cheaper.’
‘And if you took naked pictures of yourself on your cell phone, you hide your face, people,’ Witherspoon quipped as she accepted the MTV Generation Award
While viewers were convinced Witherspoon was shading Lively, a rep for the star insisted to Us Weekly that she ‘was absolutely not referencing Blake Lively’ in her speech
Meanwhile one observer put forward the theory that ‘press agents lobby to get their clients on these type of lists. they mean nothing.’
‘TIME is dead,’ ‘Wow,’ ‘Is this a joke?,’ ‘I wonder how much she paid for this write up?’ and ‘Blake babes pack it up,’ were among the other reactions.
‘I’m so tired of celebrities getting their way, especially when they deceive people and lie,’ one X use groaned. ‘I really hope karma gets her.’
‘Welp that confirms those are paid appointments just like on the walk of fame,’ alleged one as another asserted: ‘TIME is now as irrelevant as she is.’
Lively was slated for being ‘desperate,’ as one social media user remarked: ‘These PR stunts make me like her less…do they realize that?’
Another member of the public opined: ‘Oh she’s influential alright-esp when it comes to maliciously destroying an innocent man’s career. Takes a true narcissist to do that -Karma is coming for her.’
Meanwhile Lively shrugged off her controversies and issued a statement saying: ‘It’s an honor to be acknowledged on the @time 100 list for 2025.’
The Gossip Girl star said ‘to be written about by the great Sherrilyn Ifill was not something’ she takes lightly.
‘Her work has shaped our nation,’ Lively said. ‘WHO SHE IS – as a human, woman, mother, leader, fighter, healer, empath, risk taker and dream maker – has shaped my heart and also my stamina to never stop believing in a future that’s better and safer for everyone.
The resurfaced clip of Witherspoon comes amid growing backlash over Lively’s inclusion on the Time 100 list of the Most Influential People of 2025
‘Thank you. And thank you for one of the most surreal and meaningful moments of my life in this honor. My 10 year old self is pretty blown away right now.’
In her testimonial, Ifill hailed Lively as a ‘philanthropist’ and a ‘serious person’ who was ‘committed to move this country forward.’
‘I don’t know the Blake Lively of the red carpet. Or the Met Gala. I never watched Gossip Girl,’ wrote Ifill. ‘The Blake Lively I know is a philanthropist and a student of our country’s most intractable problems. She and her husband Ryan Reynolds reached out in 2019 to make a contribution to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.’
Ifill, who served as president and director-counsel of the organization from 2012 to 2022, wrote: ‘I had been getting a few of these calls, as our work fighting against voter suppression and police brutality was receiving national attention.’
She noted: ‘I’m always curious about the kind of research famous people do before they make that cold call to offer their support. The ones I have remained in relationship with are those who, like Blake, really did their homework.’
Ifill wrote that she ‘admired immediately her curiosity, and her sincere work to understand the conditions that shape this country.
‘I remember an early conversation in which she expressed frustration that so much of our nation’s history was not part of the instruction she had received as a student.’
She added that Lively’s ‘commitment to filling those gaps—and becoming the most fully informed and prepared citizen – is what I appreciate most about her. Blake is a serious person. She’s a risk taker. And she’s committed to moving this country forward. For her children. And for mine.’
Lively was given the honor amid her war of lawsuits with Baldoni, who she accused of sexual harassment on set of the 2024 film It Ends With Us. She also accused the actor/director of launching a ‘smear campaign’ against her; Baldoni and Lively seen in January 2024
Baldoni, who has denied Lively’s allegations, responded by launching a $400million defamation against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds and Lively’s publicist Leslie Sloane
Dailymail.com has reached out to Ifill for further comment on her endorsement of Lively amid the ongoing litigation, which has made headlines throughout 2025.
Lively subsequent took to Instagram Stories last Wednesday with comments about how deeply she was honored with her inclusion on the exclusive list.
‘I’m able to see this moment, almost looking back from the future, or looking ahead from childhood,’ she said, ‘and from every time period I can see how profound this is to me. Not just to be included, but to have a voice.’
Lively continued, ‘It’s a fortunate thing, when it should be a given. So thank you to time and to each of you who uplift the many who live boldly, even when it’s scary.’
