Penn Badgley looked as dashing as ever as he posed for a striking Variety shoot to promote the fourth season of his serial killer drama, You.
The actor, 36, who plays murderous former bookstore manager Joe Goldberg in the Netflix sensation, cut an edgy figure as he posed in tailored suits, before making rare comments about his previous relationship with Gossip Girl co-star Blake Lively, 35.
Penn dated Blake from 2007-2010, after meeting on the set of the hit show where Penn played Dan Humphrey and Blake portrayed Serena van der Woodsen,
Penn, who is now married to Domino Kirke, 39 and is father to son James, two – credited Blake’s teetotal lifestyle with ‘saving him’ from forcing himself to experiment with drugs and alcohol.
Discussing how he felt a ‘dark undercurrent that would bottom out in my later 20s’ as he dealt with his newfound fame, he said: ‘To be honest, I never struggled with substance. Blake didn’t drink, and I think our relationship in some ways saved me from forcing myself to go down that road.’
Hello, You: Penn Badgley looked as dashing as ever as he posed for a striking Variety shoot to promote the fourth season of his serial killer drama, You
Exes: Penn, who is now married to Domino Kirke, 39 and is father to a son James, two – credited Blake Lively’s teetotal lifestyle with ‘saving him’ from forcing himself to experiment with drugs and alcohol – pictured 2008
Reflecting on the intense interest around the show and his romance with Blake, he added: ‘Beyond our relationship, I don’t think anybody was going to be interested in me publicly.’
Blake is now married to Ryan Reynolds, with the pair recently welcoming their fourth child together,
The star, who previously revealed he asked for less sex scenes in the show ‘because fidelity in his marriage is important’ also revealed how he had never been comfortable doing intimate scenes and that Domino pushed him to take the You role.
He said: ‘It’s not a place where I’ve blurred lines. There’s almost nothing I could say with more consecration. That aspect of Hollywood has always been very disturbing to me – and that aspect of the job, that mercurial boundary – has always been something that I actually don’t want to play with at all.
‘It’s important to me in my real life to not have them. My fidelity in my relationship,It’s important to me. And actually, it was one of the reasons that I initially wanted to turn the role down. I didn’t tell anybody that. But that is why.’
The fourth season of You sees Badgley’s character, Joe Goldberg, receives a taste of his own medicine from a vengeful serial killer as he attempts to keep a low profile under a new identity.
After killing ten people over the past three seasons of You, Goldberg is unable to escape his past once he catches the attention of a murder, who is dubbed the ‘Eat the Rich Killer.’
Following his move to London, and new life as Professor Jonathan Moore, Joe battles a fresh heartbreak, which he ominously calls the ‘catalyst for a new path.’
The previous season ended with Joe killing Love, the mother of his child, before jetting off to Europe in search of Marienne.
Iconic: The fourth season of You sees Badgley’s character, Joe Goldberg, receives a taste of his own medicine from a vengeful serial killer as he attempts to keep a low profile under a new identity
Gossip girl co-stars: Penn dated Blake from 2007-2010, after meeting on the set of the hit show where Penn played Dan Humphrey and Blake portrayed Serena van der Woodsen
Dapper: Discussing how he felt a ‘dark undercurrent that would bottom out in my later 20s’ as he dealt with his newfound fame, he said: ‘To be honest, I never struggled with substance. Blake didn’t drink, and I think our relationship in some ways saved me’
Striking: The star looked dapper as he posed in the edgy shoot
Reflecting on the intense interest around the show and his romance with Blake, he added: ‘Beyond our relationship, I don’t think anybody was going to be interested in me publicly.’
Dark forces: The star channeled his serial killer alter-ego Joe in the somber shoot
