If you're already hyperventilating in anticipation of the Sept. 13 season 4 premiere of "Gossip Girl" (watch the Parisian chic preview clip here), Interview magazine is not going to help.

Starring the show's queen bee Blake Lively, Interview's September cover features the 23-year-old actress tied up in handcuffs -- layered over thick Celine cuffs -- while rocking some majorly swoon-worthy hair and makeup.

Lively's blonde locks are sculpted into smooth, face-framing Veronica Lake waves, while her eyes are smoky and her lips are painted a deep purple, courtesy of Make Up For Ever's Blueberry 422 shade, which reminds us of the hue used in Proenza Schouler's new Gothy ads.

The rest of Lively's Craig McDean-shot fashion feature has her combining the elegance of classic film noir with a "Gattaca"-style futurism, as she's shown trapped in a holding cell of some sort sporting dramatic all-black attire.





Dark pieces include jackets by Donna Karan, Burberry, and Giorgio Armani; blouses by Nicole Miller, Calvin Klein, and Moschino; thigh-baring skirts by Altuzarra and Longchamp; and jewelry and accessories by Balenciaga, Fendi, Nina Ricci, Marc Jacobs, Tom Binns, Alexander Wang, and Tom Ford.

And, this being Lively, the necklines are definitely plunging, although a lacy Eres bra is utilized for a little modesty.

The star's more serious and grown-up look goes hand-in-hand with Lively's new role in the Ben Affleck-directed "The Town," which also stars Jon Hamm, Rebecca Hall, and Affleck, who interviews her for the magazine.

In the film, Lively plays a 29-year-old drug-dealing single mother who lives in a shady part of Boston. To land the role, the actress had to perfect a Boston accent and learn from women much like her new character, who is the antithesis of Serena van der Woodsen.

Lively says it's this type of work that is most important to her.

"For me, this other stuff -- well, the perks -- is not the reason I do the job," she says. "Couture fashion week, getting to meet Karl Lagerfeld and John Galliano and Christian Louboutin is so exciting. It's like being a little girl and looking at these designers, saying, 'Can you imagine one day seeing all of those ball gowns?' But at the end of the day I wouldn't be there without my job."

A very mature response, but Lively says her upbringing contributes to her more adult attitude.

"I have a big family and no one ever treated me like a child. They always treated me like an adult, like an equal," she says. "But with acting, I think half of it is just acting confident. We stand on these red carpets and pose in these dresses, but we're all only so confident. It doesn't mean we think we're great looking or anything. It's all a façade."

Hmmm, looking like Lively does in these photos, it's hard to believe that.

To read more of Lively and Affleck's conversation, visit interviewmagazine.com and pick up the September issue on newsstands in New York and Los Angeles on Aug. 24 and nationwide Aug. 31.

In related news, find out how to achieve one of Lively's signature beauty looks at home.