Why To All the Boys' Lana Condor and Noah Centineo Stopped Encouraging Romance Speculation

Lana Condor and Noah Centineo's on-screen chemistry spurred an unwanted cost in her personal life.

By Samantha Schnurr Jan 14, 2020 4:18 PMTags
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Lana Condor and Noah Centineo's on-screen chemistry is undeniable—but it soon spurred an unwanted cost in her personal life. 

When To All the Boys I've Loved Before took over our small screens in August 2018, it swiftly submerged viewers in a nostalgic haze of high school romance and simultaneously catapulted Noah Centineo to the top of Hollywood crush lists everywhere. It wasn't long before everyone was talking about Condor and Centineo and the lovebirds they portrayed on screen. Soon, fans couldn't help but wonder if the sparks flying on their screens were simultaneously bursting behind the scenes between the two breakout stars. The speculative flames were only further fanned with things like this snap of the two napping together during a shoot, which famously became Peter's iconic lock screen photo in the film. Even Condor couldn't deny how convincing they were as a pair. 

"I would say that we probably did our job right if people like us together. I mean, when I watched the film back, I wanted Peter and Lara Jean to be together!," she previously told Rollacoaster. However, as she has since explained in a new interview with Teen Vogue, the buzz about them—albeit admittedly "encouraged" by the two stars—was not so great for her real-life boyfriend, Anthony De La Torre.

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Condor had previously told Cosmopolitan they had encouraged the speculation "because we believe in the story and the characters and we genuinely love each other." However, fans soon turned against the man in her real life. 

"I love Noah with all my heart, but the switch was when people started attacking Anthony online," she told Teen Vogue. "That was when I realized as much as I can show my love and my friendship to Noah…I can't be that private with Anthony, because people are starting to be really hurtful to him."

Watch: "To All the Boys I've Loved Before 2": What We Know So Far

As the actress said of her longtime boyfriend, "He's been by my side through everything. He's such an amazing person and has been an integral part of me staying literally sane."

Now, with the sequel, To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You, due out next month, fans will have to accept another man in Lara Jean's life, too: former love John Ambrose McClaren. And, in addition to that situation unfolding, according to Teen Vogue, Lara Jean and Peter tackle the sex talk. 

"I hope that young people feel less alone in having conversations about safe sex. It's totally fine to wait or don't wait, but at least know that it's your choice and your decision to do that," she told the magazine. "I think what I'm most proud of in the sequel is that Lara Jean is having a conversation with Peter."