Badgley and his mother relocated to California so that he could pursue an acting career, and he recalls in interview departing for Los Angeles at age 11. He soon began doing voiceovers for children's radio stations in Hollywood. In that period, he is said to have been home schooled alongside Blake Lively, his future co-star and partner. His parents divorced when he was 12. He recalls having "wanted to make music... as a 12-year-old", and recorded an unreleased pop single in 1998, referring in interview to the effort as "terrible" and "misguided". Badgley, whose acting work has included several long stints playing high school characters, actually "skipped high school altogether"; at age 14, he took a proficiency exam and began attending Santa Monica College. He was later accepted to the University of Southern California, but deferred admission due to contractual obligations, later enrolling for two years at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon.