OUTER Banks heartthrob Rudy Pankow is officially dating again, after keeping his new romance under wraps for a number of months.
He's all loved up with a very lucky lady, but who exactly is Elaine Siemek?
Who is Elaine Siemek?
Elaine keeps a much lower profile compared to her beau, but we do know that she works with him on the hit Netflix show, Outer Banks.
Outer Banks is set in coastal North Carolina and follows a town divided between wealthy seasonal residents and the working class locals, known as the Pogues.
The show's second season dropped on the streaming service on July 30, 2021.
Elaine's boyfriend Rudy Pankow plays JJ Maybank, a local surfer boy.
Elaine, meanwhile, works behind the scenes as an assistant.
Little is known about her, but her age is estimated to be between 22 and 25 years old.
Rudy will turn 24 next week (August 12, 2021).
How long have Rudy Pankow and Elaine Siemek been dating?
It's unclear exactly when the couple got together, but fans have speculated that it's most likely that they met on set.
Rudy first mentioned Elaine on his social media back in November 2020, when he wished her a very happy birthday!
Although some fans have been supportive of the pairing, others have sent hate to Elaine.
Some fans have accused the assistant of being racist, abusive, or only dating Rudy for his fame - but her actor beau disagreed.
Ever the protective boyfriend, Rudy took to Instagram to slam fans who've criticised Elaine.
In a post that's been liked by more than a million people, the star wrote "I'm here to call out the disrespect and harassment (that) someone who I love dearly is getting on a daily basis."
"Not only is she not what she is accused of being, she is the complete opposite and actively is so," he continued.
"Accusing someone you don’t know of being abusive and manipulative is not OK, especially when you don’t know the relationship personally."
The star went on to say how happy and loved up he is, and that he would continue to keep their relationship largely off social media.
He finished his post by calling out haters who hide behind the anonymity of the internet.
He then encouraged everyone to "spread positivity" online.
Despite his post, Elaine's Instagram remains private, likely due to the deluge of hate she's received.
Who else has Rudy Pankow dated?
Unfortunately for fans, we know very little about Rudy's love life before meeting Elaine.
Read More on The US Sun
It looks like his relationship with Elaine is the first time he's gone public with a girlfriend.
Of course, we can't say for certain that Rudy's been single this whole time - as a private person, it's possible he's had girlfriends behind the scenes!
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