Austin Butler addressed Emily Ratajkowski’s romance rumors after the two were photographed on a dinner date in New York City.
“The real answer is, I have a lot of friends, we’re friends, we’ve had dinner, we’re friends,” the 34-year-old actor told Vanity Fair on Tuesday, insisting he is currently single.
Butler admitted that she once felt the public interest in her private life was so stifling that she “just wanted to hide.” But his perspective has changed.
“I’m going to live a cramped little life because I’m scared of what other people will say or think,” he asked rhetorically.
In early September, Butler and Ratajkowski, also 34, were snapped grabbing food and drinks and getting cozy at the Waverly Inn in the West Village.
An eyewitness told Page Six at the time that the “Elvis” star “put his arm around her” and “kept nodding to her words.”
Officials said the pair made no attempt to hide as they were “in a large half-booth in the center of the restaurant where everyone could see.”
Dumois reported that the two were “very giggly and cute” during the outing, but a source tells TMZ that they didn’t show much PDA during their roughly two-hour conversation.
The “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” star and the brunette beauty first began their relationship in August when they were spotted at the afterparty for the New York premiere of his film “Catch Stealing.”
Interestingly, Butler was also rumored to be dating his Caught Stealing co-star Zoe Kravitz. The Daily Mail previously claimed that their relationship was “not a fully fledged romance,” but TMZ later reported that the co-workers were just friends.
Butler’s last public relationship was with model Kaia Gerber. The former couple broke up in January after three years of dating.
Meanwhile, Ratajkowski, who has four-year-old son Sylvester with ex-husband Sebastian Bear-McClard, was last reported to be dating musician Shabouzy in August 2024.
