When it comes to Austin Butler's former relationship with Vanessa Hudgens, he tends to have a little less conversation and keep things a little more private.
But during an interview for GQ Hype, the Elvis star was asked about the end of their nearly nine-year romance. "Life is full of changes," he replied, "and you've got to find a way to constantly be evolving and growing."
Hudgens and Butler started dating in 2011 and developed a burning love. "It's hard for me to even put into words how much that girl means to me," he told E! News at the Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood premiere in 2019. "I'm so inspired by her every day and just love her to my core."
So fans were all shook up when news broke in January 2020 that the pair had split. While neither Hudgens nor Butler publicly shared a reason for the breakup at the time, a source told E! News it was "a matter of distance" and their work schedules keeping them apart (she had been working on The Princess Switch: Switched Again at the time, and he had been getting ready to start filming Elvis).
"There is no bad blood at all," the insider said, "and they have a lot of respect for each other."
However, both have since moved on: Hudgens is dating Cole Tucker, with the High School Musical star and the baseball player making their relationship Instagram official in February 2021, and Butler has been linked to Kaia Gerber.
The actor and the model have been photographed together on multiple occasions. However, Butler says he tries not to pay the paparazzi pics any attention. "I go, 'If I don't see the picture, then it doesn't really exist to me,'" he told GQ Hype. "I don't want to be really negative, but there's hardly any job I despise more than paparazzi."
Earlier this month, Butler and Gerber made their red carpet debut as a couple at the 2022 Met Gala. Still, he's staying tight-lipped on their relationship for now. "I don't think there's anything I want to share about that," he told the outlet. "But thank you for providing the space."