Part of the squad, at least, showed up. Ice Spice, the Haim sisters — Este, Danielle and Alana — and stylist Ashley Avignone were all by Taylor Swift’s side in the luxury box as she watched her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, play in the Super Bowl at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on February 9. But one notable absence had fans wondering if there’s bad blood with one of her longtime BFFs. “The fact that Blake Lively wasn’t there raised a lot of red flags,” a source exclusively tells In Touch, noting that the actress’ absence only fueled recent speculation that she and Taylor have had a falling out over Blake’s nasty legal battle with her It Ends With Us costar and director, Justin Baldoni, who brought up Taylor’s name in court papers. “All the talk has put their friendship in question. People think Taylor has kicked Blake out of her famous squad.”
NO MORE DRAMA
The legal battle – in which Blake has accused Justin of retaliating against her over her sexual harassment allegations and he’s countered by suing her for defamation, which she’s denied — continues to make headlines. According to the texts Justin, 41, included in his filing, Blake, 37, allegedly referred to her husband, Ryan Reynolds, 48, and Taylor, 35, as her “dragons,” which, Justin claims, “could not have been clearer. [He] was not just dealing with Lively. He was also facing Lively’s ‘dragons,’ two of the most influential and wealthy celebrities in the world, who were not afraid to make things very difficult for him.”
But Taylor has only met Justin in passing once, the source points out. While her song is in the movie, “that’s the extent of her involvement,” says the source. “It would be completely understandable if Taylor would want to stay out of the drama.” But the source also notes that the singer successfully waged a sexual assault lawsuit against a former DJ she accused of groping her in 2017, which was hailed as a denunciation of victim-blaming.
“I guess I just think about all the people that weren’t believed and the people who haven’t been believed, and the people who are afraid to speak up because they think they won’t be believed,” Taylor told fans at a concert a year later. Says the source: “Imagine if now she didn’t support one of her best friends in a similar situation? Not likely.”
They’ve been incredibly tight for 10 years now. “Taylor is close with Blake and her family and is even godmother to Blake’s kids,” points out the source. “Justin’s lawsuit may be a nightmare, but they would never let something like this destroy them.”
