Is this real life or the most extra episode of courtroom couture we’ve ever witnessed?!
Blake Lively apparently decided that if she was going to spend her morning in mediation over her explosive legal battle with Justin Baldoni, she was going to do it her way. And by her way, we mean with a luxury mahjong set delivered straight to the courthouse door. Seriously. You cannot make this stuff up.
Related: No Deal For Blake Lively…!
According to Page Six, the former Gossip Girl star arrived bright and early around 8:30 a.m. for a mediation session tied to her sexual harassment lawsuit against Baldoni. The talks reportedly kicked off around 10 a.m., with both sides attempting to hammer out a pre-trial settlement. Tense? Surely. Dramatic? Obviously. Slow-moving? Uh, apparently so.
By around 11 a.m., as the legal back-and-forth dragged on, Lively allegedly decided she needed a little distraction. Enter: her chauffeur. According to insiders speaking to the news outlet on Thursday, her driver pulled up to the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse carrying a full mahjong set for the actress. Yes, a centuries-old Chinese tile game became the unexpected star of this already headline-grabbing showdown.
Lively has been open about her love for mahjong in the past. In fact, she previously gushed to Vogue about teaching her friends how to play. And apparently she doesn’t just dabble. She invests! Word is she favors sets from Oh My Mahjong, which can cost up to $500. That’s not exactly drugstore board game pricing. And now that set (or another one) is in court, apparently!
Meanwhile, the stakes in this case are anything but playful. Lively has accused Baldoni not only of sexual harassment but also of attempting to damage her reputation during their time filming It Ends With Us. Meanwhile, he has denied any wrongdoing.
Still, the image of a Hollywood A-lister passing time with ornate tiles while lawyers work is almost too on-brand. It’s giving bored board queen energy! LOLz!
And TBH, we’ll be watching every tile that falls from here on out. How about U??
[Image via Variety/YouTube/MEGA/WENN]
