Penn Badgley has captivated fans with his incredible portrayal of the brooding Dan Humphrey on Gossip Girl and the disturbing stalker on Netflix’s You. But behind the scenes, he is making headlines with his high-profile relationships.
One of his most talked-about romances is his time with his Gossip Girl co-star Blake Lively.
And though he is now settled with his wife, Domino Kirke, here is a detailed look at the 38-year-old star’s romantic history.
Penn Badgley and Blake Lively
One of Badgley’s most notable relationships was with Lively. The two started dating in 2007, just when the Gossip Girl premiered.
Playing the roles of Dan and Serena van der Woodsen in the six-season teen drama, their on-screen romance mirrored their real-life relationship, making them one of Hollywood’s favorite young couples at the time.
However, during his appearance on Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddypodcast, the actor-producer revealed that dating the now-37-year-old actress was a struggle while they were still filming their show back then.
“There are many differences between film and television. One of them is that when you do a film, you do it once. And you kind of give it your all and then you move on — whether you want to or not,” Badgley told the host.
However, when doing the show, he stressed they were doing it “constantly” that fans started to associated him with his fictional character.
So, as he was only in his early 20s at the time, he still did not have the “emotional maturity to understand how to differentiate” himself from his role “in terms of self-worth.”
“What people seemed to think of Dan seemed to be what people thought of me,” he said.
Hence, he also found it hard to separate his on- and off-screen romance with Lively and her character that affected their relationship, resulting in their separation in 2010.
Low-Key Romance with Zoë Kravitz
After his split with Lively, Badgley was linked to Zoë Kravitz. However, it was not until 2011 that they started dating.
But compared to his previous romance, his relationship with Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet’s daughter was more private.
In fact, they rarely spoke about each other publicly and were seldom seen together.
Unfortunately, after two years of being together, the ex-couple called it quits, with a source saying it just did not work out.
“It just wasn't working,” the source continued. “It really did end on good terms, though.”
Allegedly, the two were at “two different stages in their careers,” and did not have “time for each other.”
A Lasting Love with Domino Kirke
Two years after his breakup with Kravitz, Badgley finally found the love of his life with Domino Kirke, a doula and Jemima and Lola Kirke’s sister.
They began dating in 2014 and were first seen together in New York. In February 2017, they finally tied the knot in a courthouse ceremony in Brooklyn. It was followed by a bigger celebration with family and friends later in upstate New York in June that year.
“My first wedding was more of a civil ceremony with about 40 people that were able to join us in a pinch,” Kirke explained about their two weddings. “The second one was more planned. 200 people came from all over the world. It just felt necessary to have both.”
The couple welcomed their first son in 2020 and is now expecting twins. Kirke also has a son from a previous relationship.
Badgley may portray complicated relationships on screen, but his real-life love story is quite different. Though his past romance with Lively felt like fan service for Gossip Girl followers, he is now happily married and a devoted family man.