An insider told the Daily Mail that Sutton Foster and Blake Lively have not developed a close one-on-one friendship, even as their partners, Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds, remain close friends and collaborators.
The source described the two actresses as "mostly acquaintances" who are cordial when they are together but do not confide in one another or spend time alone without their famous partners. The couples have been seen double-dating and attending events together, but the insider said "there’s no real affinity" between Foster and Lively and that "they’ve never had a deep and meaningful friendship."
The difference in the actresses' public profiles and career trajectories was cited as a factor by the source. Foster, 50, is known for Broadway roles and has maintained a relatively private life in New York City, while Lively, 38, rose to prominence with films such as The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and the television series Gossip Girl and has continued to maintain a high-profile presence on red carpets and in celebrity circles.
The insider also pointed to how each woman has handled past public controversies differently. According to the report, Foster sought to stay out of the spotlight after rumors emerged linking her to Jackman, and Jackman and his then-wife Deborra-Lee Furness announced their separation in September 2023 after nearly three decades of marriage. Jackman and Foster were later publicly confirmed as a couple in January when they left a Los Angeles restaurant hand-in-hand. Lively, meanwhile, has remained publicly active amid legal issues tied to the film It Ends With Us and personal disputes reported in the media.
The report likened Foster and Lively's relationship to that of Taylor Swift and Brittany Mahomes, saying that while they are "bonded by their men," they have different interests and lifestyles. The insider emphasized that the dynamic has not affected Jackman and Reynolds’s relationship, which the report described as continuing to thrive. Jackman and Reynolds first met while filming X-Men Origins: Wolverine in 2007 and have maintained a long-standing friendship; they are set to reunite on screen in a comedy written by and starring Reynolds, in which the pair play former boy-band members who reunite in middle age.
Representatives for Foster and Lively were contacted by the Daily Mail for comment, the report said. Neither party has issued a public statement to corroborate or dispute the insider's characterization.
Jackman and Reynolds have publicly praised one another in the past, and close ties between the two men have been a frequent subject of media coverage as they navigate both professional collaborations and personal developments. For now, according to the report, the partners remain aligned and will continue to appear together while their respective wives and girlfriends maintain a cordial but not intimate relationship.