It appears that Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler have now officially broken up after nearly 9 years together.
Having met on the set of High School Musical, the pair began their fairytale romance in September 2011, and it now seems as though it’s all gone horribly wrong.
There were rumors of discontent. Eagle-eyed fans had noticed that Austin, 28, hadn’t posted any photos of Vanessa, 31, on his Instagram since July. Was there something amiss? Was trouble brewing? Yes, is the answer.
Suspicions flared more recently when Vanessa posted photos of herself without her man over the festive and New Year holidays. It was clear the couple did not spend the holidays together.
In one Instagram post, Vanessa toasted the old decade and said: “Here’s to the next decade being the one to never forget.” The photo of her was conspicuous for its large Austin Butler shaped empty void.
A source close to the pair has confirmed the news and revealed that Vanessa has been telling close friends about the break-up. The couple has still not spoken out publicly about their split. Therefore, we, unfortunately, don’t have a definitive reason as to why they called it quits.
Jenzia Burgos at Stylecaster theorized that Austin, who is currently working on a role as Elvis Presley in an upcoming Baz Luhrmann-directed biopic, had perhaps started copying The King of Rock and Roll in his “heartthrob” ways.
When the couple first met, Vanessa was dating Zac Effron, and it has not been lost on some folk that Zac is currently single again. Fans took to Twitter to register their hope that Vanessa and Zac or “Zanessa” might become a thing again.
Me finding out Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler broke up, but then realizing this is Zac Efron’s chance to revive Zanessa pic.twitter.com/a3oQiynRtg
— Yvancé the Fiancé (@Yvannahhh) January 14, 2020
Austin has been working on an Elvis Presley biopic, and Vanessa has recently starred in Netflix’s Christmas movie The Princess Switch and will be working on its sequel The Knight Before Christmas.