Andy Signore discusses Taylor Swift's mysterious absence from the AMAs, links it to her involvement in Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni legal drama

Movie producer Andy Signore recently commented on Taylor Swift's absence at the 2025 American Music Awards. According to Billboard, the 2025 AMA's were held on Monday, May 26, 2025.

Signore shared his views on his podcast Popcorned Planet, referencing a Daily Mail article. The article stated Taylor Swift's absence at the AMA's was linked to her involvement in the Lively-Baldoni drama.

He noted that Taylor Swift was enjoying her time out of the public eye with her partner, Travis Kelce. He added:

"She now has to go dark and go hide because Blake Lively has now thrusted all this in there...and yeah, they don't want to deal with that right now. They're pissed to her. They don't want to deal with it, so Taylor's out there with Travis Kelce, living her life, taking a break, a much-deserved break as he's prepping for the next season."

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More about Taylor Swift's absence from the AMA's

Taylor Swift’s loyal legion of fans, the Swifties, were left disappointed when the pop superstar did not show up at the 2025 American Music Awards. There had been speculation that Swift might make an appearance either in person or virtually, and possibly announce the release of Reputation (Taylor’s Version), one of her most eagerly awaited re-recorded albums.

According to the Daily Mail, Swift was nominated in six categories at this year’s AMAs, including Artist of the Year, Album of the Year (The Tortured Poets Department), and Favorite Touring Artist.

With 40 AMA wins to her name, more than any other artist in history, many anticipated that she would at least make a virtual appearance, as she has done in the past. However, the Shake It Off singer was not in attendance and did not win any awards this year.

As per Billboard, fans had been closely watching for clues, especially since streams of Reputation surged by 14% in the days leading up to the awards. This amounts to 2.4 million streams on Memorial Day alone. The spike indicated that Swifties were anticipating a surprise drop or announcement.

As reported by the Daily Mail on May 27, 2025, Taylor Swift's non-attendance was attributed to the legal battle surrounding Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni. In December 2024, Blake Lively filed a lawsuit against It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni, accusing him of s*xual harassment on set and of launching a smear campaign against her.

Baldoni denied the allegations and countersued Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, accusing them of defamation and extortion. Baldoni presented text messages allegedly shared between him and Lively, where he mentioned that Blake used Taylor Swift and Reynolds to push her script rewrites on him.

According to Variety, the alleged text read:

“Also was working on rooftop scene today, I really love what you did. It really does [help] a lot. Makes it so much more fun and interesting. (And I would have felt that way without Ryan and Taylor) You really are a talent across the board. Really excited [and] grateful to do this together.”

"The Boys In The Boat" New York Screening - Image via Getty

According to Variety, Baldoni's attorneys issued a subpoena to Taylor Swift in April 2025, stating that she possessed information pertinent to the case. However, on May 23, 2025, the subpoena against the pop star was withdrawn.

An inside source close to Swift reported to the Daily Mail that the singer was taking a step back from her friendship with Lively. They also attributed Swift's absence at the AMA's to her reluctance to answer questions involving the Lively-Baldoni lawsuit.

They further stated that Taylor Swift did not appreciate being dragged into the legal drama and wanted to "move on."

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According to the BBC, the trial between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni is scheduled for March 9, 2026.