For much of Austin Butler’s relationship with Vanessa Hudgens, she was by far the more famous one; many mentions of Butler in entertainment media merely referred to him as Hudgens’ boyfriend. However, by 2020, the balance of power had started to shift, and the two announced that they were going their separate ways.
It seems that both members of the couple being jet-setting movie stars put too much pressure on their schedules, with a source telling E! News, “They’re just shooting on two different continents and it’s a matter of distance.” At the time, Butler was in Australia filming Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” biopic, while Hudgens was involved in another installment of her hit “Princess Switch” franchise for Netflix. “There is no bad blood at all, and they have a lot of respect for each other,” the insider insisted. Though E! News suggested they might have been headed for a reunion, both went on to quickly date others. According to a source cited by Life & Style the following year, Hudgens was “totally cool” with Butler’s next relationship (more on this below), adding, “She has moved on.”
Meanwhile, he publicly addressed the breakup years later in an interview with GQ about “Elvis,” remembering that time as a pivotal one in his life. “Life is full of changes, and you’ve got to find a way to constantly be evolving and growing,” Butler said. His style was evolving, too; the formerly-blond heartthrob was now wearing his hair black in a preview of things to come.
