Serena van der Woodsen.

We know her as the beautiful, glamorous, elegant young woman about town; fashionable and firm but fair ruler of Manhattan's young social elite; wooer of hearts and slayer of men with names like Trip van der Bilt; tabloid magnet and off-and-on dater of her off-and-on step-brother.

Now as the series enters its fourth season, the plot for Serena has begun to further thicken. Will she return from her summer vacation in Paris as a new woman, or out to settle old scores? Will she get back together with Dan? Will Nate come calling once again? What will she wear?

But just as the arc of Serena's sordid life on Gossip Girl has brought new priorities, changes, and directions, so too has the trajectory of Blake Lively's career away from the CW series signaled a shift in direction for the astoundingly beautiful 23-year-old actress.

In addition to her familiar role on Gossip Girl, you can catch Blake in The Town, her new movie with Ben Affleck, who interviews her for this very article in fact.

Read all about it and see more photos in Interview ...

Steve Marsi is the Managing Editor of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Google+ or email him here.