Blake Lively Gossip Girl Audition Tape

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 7 October 2015

Before Blake Lively was doyenne of the now-defunct Preserve (opens in new tab), she was a young actress coming off the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and that Justin Long vehicle about a fake college. When she read for the part of Serena van der Woodsen in Gossip Girl, she might not have known it was to be her breakout role, but as you can see in the recently uncovered audition tape, she had a certain something—even at just 20 years old.

In the scene, the upstart squad leader (opens in new tab) catches up with Blair after returning from boarding-school exile, asking after her family (Dad: left wife for another man; Mom: lost 15 pounds, got eye-lift) and pleading with her to let things go back to the way they used to be.

Fat chance of that, as we and *stage whispers* FREAKING DAN HUMPHREY know, but observe a star in the making nonetheless. Watch the video here.

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Chelsea Peng is a writer and editor who was formerly the assistant editor at MarieClaire.com. She's also worked for The Strategist and Refinery29, and is a graduate of Northwestern University. On her tombstone, she would like a GIF of herself that's better than the one that already exists on the Internet and a free fro-yo machine. Besides frozen dairy products, she's into pirates, carbs, Balzac, and snacking so hard she has to go lie down.