Blake Lively brought star power to Midtown Manhattan this afternoon where she helped to unveil a star, made from 25,000 Swarovski crystals, which will sit atop the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree this holiday season. The starlet dressed appropriately for the occasion modeling a Swarovski crystal-adorned blazer and Christian Louboutin heeled boots for the ceremony and showcasing a Chanel handbag and grey Peacoat upon her departure.

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Just last week the couple announced that they had ended their relationship. But today it was back to work!

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Penn Badgley and Blake Lively, both 23, have ended their three-year romance, a rep for the Gossip Girl costars exclusively tells the new Us Weekly (on newsstands now).

They called it quits in mid-September.

“They’re professionals,” an insider tells Us Weekly. “They’re still good friends and hang out on the set.”

The source says that the duo — who met as preteen actors in L.A. — “kept this news to themselves for a while.”

Indeed, they have always taken a drama-free approach to their relationship.

Badgley told Us last fall that working together while dating didn’t present any problems: “Some would say it’s a double-edged sword, but in our case, we manage to balance it well.”

Even those closest to the twosome may be shocked to hear the news.

“Nobody on set had any idea,” says the insider. “They’re really just private.”

Boo! They were spotted kissing on the 20th of this month!

Source

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I’m totally excited to see this movie, I think it looks really good! Ben Affleck hit the red carpet without wife, Jennifer Garner, while Mad Men hottie Jon Hamm brought longtime girlfriend, actress Jennifer Westfeldt. Also on the red carpet was Ben’s best friend, Matt Damon and his pregnant wife Luciana. Also pictured, Rebecca Hall, Blake Lively and Jeremy Renner.

PS: Love Blake Lively’s dress!

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Blake Lively on new film with Ben Affleck

We talk about her latest film, The Town, starring and directed by Ben Affleck

Without any knowledge of her Gossip Girl CV (he supposedly thought she was fresh out of acting class), Affleck was so impressed by her audition that he rewrote the part of Krista, a drug-addicted single mother and ex-girlfriend of Affleck’s character in The Town, especially for her.

Blake Lively on cooking and staying at home

Despite her natural warmth and cosy front – she’ll insist later how she prefers cooking to going out, (‘That’s my true talent, acting pays the bill’)

Blake Lively on Gossip Girl

‘I’m on a very commercial show so the last thing I want to do is a commercial movie,’ she expands. ‘I wanna take risks, I don’t wanna play it safe. I mean, I could probably make more money if I did more commercial projects. It would be nice to buy an apartment but I’m 22 and I don’t need to yet.’ [She currently shares her rented abode with boyfriend, Penn.]

How long are you signed up for? ‘We have six-year contracts but who knows how long TV shows ever run. They don’t always go the full term contracted… We’re in season four.’

Blake claims she knew the instant she read the first Gossip Girl script that, ‘Whoever does this is not going to be able to walk outside of their house.’

Blake Lively on Penn and being famous

Do you ever Google yourself?

‘No,’ she almost sneers at the idea. ‘Why? I mean, I’m with myself all of the time. Why would I want to see myself on the internet? I can look in the mirror. I think it’s destructive.’

All she’ll say about Badgley is that, ‘At the end of the day, you’re just in any relationship. How does anybody go to work every day and come home? You just do it and it either works or it doesn’t.’ Then she reminds you of how much of a homebody she is: ‘You know, I don’t have very many friends that are actors, the ones that I do have are people I’ve worked on films with for months. I don’t go around collecting people for my BlackBerry because I want to have phone friendships.’

More at Marie Claire UK!

Blake Lively and the rest of the Gossip Girl cast filmed outside the Standard Hotel in NYC yesterday afternoon. She filmed with her new love interest, Sam Page (you know him as Joan’s husband in Mad Men!). Lively, 23, is still dating costar Penn Badgley, and they arrived on set together.

Bauer Griffin