Which two actors’ daughters inspired the names Betty, James, and Inez in Taylor Swift’s Folklore story?

Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds inspired the names used for Betty, James, and Inez in Taylor Swift’s Folklore story. Lively and Reynolds are the parents of the children whose names Swift incorporated into the album’s fictional world.

The names appear across the connected songs “cardigan,” “august,” and “betty.” Betty and James form the central couple, while Inez is mentioned in “betty” as a source of gossip. The narrator of “august” remains unnamed in the lyrics, although Swift said she privately thought of names such as Augusta or Augustine.

The real-family connection does not make the songs autobiographical. The characters belong to the fictional teenage love triangle Swift created for Folklore. Fans sometimes assume the three names identify three members of one fictional family, but the songs use them as characters in a complicated relationship.