How Austin Butler Finally Addressed That Awkward Diss Toward Ex-Girlfriend Vanessa Hudgens

September 03, 2024

Highlights

Austin Butler explained that he referred to Vanessa Hudgens as a friend to protect her privacy and avoid stirring up unnecessary conversation.
Butler emphasized that he still cares deeply for Hudgens and did not intend to erase their past relationship.
Both Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler have moved on, with Hudgens marrying Cole Tucker and Butler dating Kaia Gerber.

Austin Butler explained why he called his ex-girlfriend Vanessa Hudgens just a friend when promoting his Oscar-nominated role in Elvis. Fans felt he was downplaying their long-term relationship, and that it was highly disrespectful to the High School Musical star.

In Austin Butler’s mind, he was just protecting Vanessa Hudgens. “Oh, yeah, I learned a lesson with that one,” he told Esquire in a recent profile to promote Masters Of The Air. “I felt that I was respecting her privacy in a way and not wanting to bring up a ton of things that would cause her to have to talk.”

“I have so much love and care for her,” Butler added, explaining to the outlet that he “was in no way trying to erase anything.”

“I value my own privacy so much,” the Dune: Part Two actor explained. “I didn’t want to give up anybody else’s privacy.”

The following takes a look at why people believe Vanessa Hudgens helped Austin Butler play Elvis Presley. We also break down why Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler split up and what their relationship looks like now.

Did Vanessa Hudgens Help Austin Butler Get Elvis Role?

Austin Butler told a story during the 2023 Hollywood Reporter roundtable about his "friend" Vanessa Hudgens predicting his Academy Award-nominated role as Elvis Presley in the film biopic.

“The month before I heard that [director Baz Luhrmann] was making the movie, I was going to look at Christmas lights with a friend, and there was an Elvis Christmas song on the radio and I was singing along, and my friend looked over at me and goes, ‘You’ve got to play Elvis,’” he explained during the interview.

“A couple of weeks later, I was playing the piano,” Butler added. “I never really sang for any of my friends or anything. That same friend was there and I was playing the piano. She said, ‘I’m serious. You gotta figure out how you can get the rights to a script.’ Then my agent called and said, ‘So Baz Luhrmann is making an Elvis film.’”

Austin Butler Was Accused Of Cheating On Vanessa Hudgens Causing An End To Their Relationship, But Are The Rumors True?

Vanessa Hudgens is not losing sleep over her breakup with Austin Butler, but some fans are convinced that their split resulted from his cheating.

Austin Butler admitted during a Los Angeles Times interview that he was referring to a romantic partner rather than a friend. “I was with my partner at the time,” he said.

“We’d been together for so long and she had this sort of clairvoyant moment and so I really, I owe her a lot for believing in me.”

Vanessa Hudgens has also spoken about manifesting Austin Butler's Golden Globe winning performance as Elvis Presley. Butler and Hudgens individually recalled how the Presley role came about.

“Last December, we were driving along and we were listening to Christmas music, and an Elvis Presley Christmas song came on,” Hudgens explained in a 2019 appearance on Live with Kelly and Ryan . “He’d just dyed his hair dark ― he’s a natural blond ― and I was looking at him and he was singing along, and I was like: ‘Babe, you need to play Elvis.’”

The Truth Behind Vanessa Hudgens And Austin Butler's Break Up

Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler dated between 2011 and January 2020. The actors first met in 2006 after her High School Musical co-star Ashley Tisdale introduced them.

“It’s great because Austin was my best friend since way before they got together," Tisdale explained. "So it’s just nice to have your two best friends be in a relationship.”

"It's hard for me to even put into words how much that girl means to me," Butler said about his then-girlfriend 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."

While Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler's breakup details have been kept private, sources say it happened due to their busy schedules.

Before their split, Hudgens spoke about the perils of having a relationship where one often worked away from the other. She told Cosmo UK, “It’s eight years this year – FaceTime, good communication, respect and trust [are what keep us going]. The longest we’ve been apart was four months. It sucks. You start hating hearing yourself say 'I miss you.' But if it’s your person, you make it work.”

Austin Butler said, “Life is full of changes. You’ve got to find a way to constantly be evolving and growing."

Vanessa Hudgens explained to Nylon that, "The public only sees so much. I've also been through two very long life-changing relationships, and no one really knows what happened except for me."

Both Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler appear to have moved on. Hudgens recently married baseball player Cole Tucker and Butler now dates model Kaia Gerber.

What Happened With Austin Butler And Vanessa Hudgen's Awkward Red Carpet Encounter?

Austin Butler and Vanessa Hudgens made headlines for appearing to ignore each other at Vanity Fair’s 2023 Oscars party. The Oscar nominee appeared to glance toward his ex-girlfriend while waiting for a car outside the event and chatting to Sharon Stone.

In response to speculation about the clip, Vanessa Hudgens posted an Instagram Story video of Jimmy Kimmel speaking to Malala Yousafzai at the Academy Awards. In the clip, the chat show host asked the activist her take on the Harry Styles and Chris Pine "Spitgate," incident.

Yousafzai responds to the host saying that she “only talk[s] about peace.” Hudgens asked her followers to do the same. “Let’s all be on the ‘I only talk about peace’ train,” the “High School Musical” star captioned the upload. “OK?”

Some Of Austin Butler's Movie And TV Show Salaries Have Made Him Absurdly Rich

The Elvis actor has made millions from his appearances on various TV shows and his stellar movie career.

Hudgens also took to social media to poke fun at her ex for the Elvis Presley accent he has retained since he made the Baz Luhrmann movie.

An Instagram user wrote that Butler “went to the Lady Gaga school of Oscar campaign acting,” and the Sucker Punch actress commented that she was “crying.”

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