Austin Butler: relationships, temporary blindness, career

There’s a peculiar moment in every actor’s rise when the public starts caring as much about what happens off-screen as on it. For Austin Butler — the former Nickelodeon kid who transformed into Elvis Presley and earned an Oscar nomination — that moment arrived alongside two very different headlines: a temporary blindness episode that sounded like something from a thriller, and a relationship timeline that fans have followed for over a decade. Here’s what we actually know about both.

Born: August 17, 1991 ·
Breakout Role: Elvis Presley in ‘Elvis’ (2022) ·
Award: BAFTA for Best Actor ·
Notable Ex-Partner: Vanessa Hudgens (2011-2020) ·
Known For: Zoey 101, The Carrie Diaries, Dune: Part Two

Actor with nearly two decades of credits, six major relationships in the public eye, one health scare that made international headlines. The key facts, consolidated.

The pattern: six rows reveal a career that went from child TV star to Oscar-nominated leading man — but the relationship column stayed consistently marked “in a relationship” for a decade, then went ambiguous.

Who is Austin Butler in a relationship with?

Current relationship status 2024

• Austin Butler is reportedly single as of late 2024, following his split from Kaia Gerber. TMZ reported on January 7, 2025, that the couple had ended their relationship around the end of 2024.
• Gerber told The Knot in February 2024 that she tries to keep her relationship private because “so few things” in her life are private — a statement that now reads as foreshadowing.
• No public statements from Butler about a new partner have been made as of writing.

The implication: Butler’s dating status has moved from a decade-long public relationship to a shorter one, then radio silence. The pattern suggests a deliberate shift toward privacy.

Past relationships overview

• Vanessa Hudgens (2011-2020): Their nine-year relationship was one of Hollywood’s most stable young-actor pairings. They met on the set of the film Beastly (2011) and remained together until 2020.
• Kaia Gerber (2021 – late 2024): Butler was first linked to model Kaia Gerber in 2021. The relationship lasted approximately three years before reports of a split emerged around New Year 2025.

What condition did Austin Butler have that caused temporary blindness?

Cause of temporary blindness

• In 2023, while flying to Cincinnati, Ohio to begin production on The Bikeriders, Butler woke up with a severe migraine that caused temporary vision loss. The episode lasted only a few minutes before his sight gradually returned, Entertainment Weekly reported.
• Butler told People that the episode felt like his “life was being drained from his body” and that he thought he was dying.
• Medical experts consulted by Deadline linked the episode to severe sleep deprivation — Butler had been pushing through exhaustion during a grueling promotional tour.

How long did it last?

• The temporary blindness lasted “only a few minutes,” Butler said in multiple interviews. Once his vision returned, he continued to set and worked the rest of the day, E! News confirmed.
• Butler later described the experience as a “wake-up call” and said he has since tried to balance work and health People.
• The actor has also described suffering from migraines and foot pain for months after the Dune: Part Two press tour, and spent a week in the hospital in 2021 with appendicitis-like pain after filming Elvis.

Why did Vanessa Hudgens and Austin Butler break up?

Timeline of their relationship

• Butler and Hudgens began dating in 2011 after meeting on the set of Beastly. They were together for nine years before announcing their split in 2020.
• During their relationship, Hudgens supported Butler through his early career — including his four-hour-a-day process of learning Elvis’s voice.

Reasons for split

• The breakup was widely attributed to scheduling conflicts and personal growth rather than any specific incident or third party, The Knot summarized.
• Butler was dedicating increasing time to his transformative role in Elvis, while Hudgens was building her own career. Sources close to both said the split was amicable.

The pattern: Butler’s most consequential relationship ended not with a scandal but with a calendar. Two careers pulling in different directions proved stronger than nine years together.

Did Austin Butler dump Kaia Gerber?

Relationship timeline with Kaia Gerber

• Butler and Gerber were first linked in 2021. The relationship lasted roughly three years.
• Gerber, a model and daughter of Cindy Crawford, was 19 when they began dating; Butler was 30. The age gap drew some public attention but was not reported as a source of tension.

Breakup details as reported

• TMZ reported on January 7, 2025, that the split occurred around the end of 2024 and that it was mutual.
• No official statements from either party have confirmed who initiated the breakup. Business Insider noted that the relationship had been low-profile in recent months, with both focusing on their respective careers.

The pattern: Butler’s relationships seem to end when his career accelerates. Nine years with Hudgens ended during the Elvis build-up. Three years with Gerber ended as Dune: Part Two press began. The implication is that his intense work schedule is a recurring strain on partnerships.

Is Austin Butler still single?

Current dating status

• As of late 2024, Austin Butler is reportedly single. No credible reports have linked him to a new partner since his split from Kaia Gerber.
• Butler has not publicly addressed his relationship status in any recent interviews. His comments have focused on health recovery and upcoming projects.

Public statements about relationships

• Butler told People that he is focusing on his health and work, and that he no longer believes struggle is necessary for his craft.
• Kaia Gerber’s statement about privacy — “so few things in my life are private” — suggests that the couple deliberately kept their relationship out of the spotlight.

Why this matters: For public figures like Butler, “single” is a moving target. The gap between relationship end and public confirmation can be months. What the timeline shows is a pattern of long gaps between breakups and new relationships, suggesting Butler does not rebound quickly.

“I thought I was dying. And then slowly, my sight started coming back.”

— Austin Butler to Entertainment Weekly, describing the temporary blindness episode

“I try to keep my relationship private because so few things in my life are private.”

— Kaia Gerber to The Knot, February 2024

Butler’s career arc from child actor to Oscar nominee looked inevitable from the outside. On the inside, it cost him a nine-year relationship, a shorter one, his eyesight for a few terrifying minutes, and a week in a hospital bed. The episode from 2023 may have finally given him a reason to slow down. For Butler, the choice going forward is clear: protect the body that earned the acclaim, or risk losing more than sight.

For a comprehensive overview of Austin Butler’s health scares and romantic history, this detailed update on his health and relationships offers an in-depth look.

Frequently asked questions

Related reading: Jon Bernthal · Paul Mescal