Every so often, two actors playing romantic interests have so much palpable chemistry that the world starts to doubt the whole “acting” part. Are they really that good at pretending that they’re lighting a spark and letting it burn? Or are they holding out feelings for each other in real life, leading to two authentic romantic performances of a lifetime?
Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron started dating after playing boyfriend and girlfriend in High School Musical. Affair rumors swirled around Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga after their fiery relationship in A Star is Born. Tom Holland and Zendaya hit things off on the set of Spider-Man: Homecoming. And now, relationship gossip is surrounding Top Gun: Maverick’s Glen Powell and Euphoria’s Sydney Sweeney, as they work on filming an untitled romantic comedy from Easy A director Will Gluck.
While there’s plenty of photographic evidence of their chemistry, none of the rumors have actually been substantiated—it’s all just speculation online. That hasn’t stopped everyone from analyzing every inch of Sweeney’s Instagram feed, which is littered with photos of her handsome co-star.
Both Powell and Sweeney are reportedly spoken for, though, which makes the possibility of their real-life romance even more dramatic. Powell has been dating model Gigi Paris since 2020, and Sweeney has been engaged to restaurateur Jonathan Davino since 2022.
Though Paris has been supportive of her boyfriend’s new rom com, visiting Powell for two weeks during filming in Australia, but now, the gossip seems to have struck a nerve with her. Page Six reported Monday that while Paris had commented a string of celebratory emojis on Sweeney’s post announcing the casting news for the rom-com in January, her now appears comment appears to have been deleted. Following a string of lovey-dovey posts from Sweeney featuring Powell, Paris has also allegedly unfollowed her boyfriend’s co-star on Instagram.
This is an understandable move, considering the fact that Sweeney has posted photos of herself cozying up to Paris’ boyfriend—in one, her hand seems to be resting on Powell's thigh. There’s also a video where Powell leans Sweeney back on his lap and then pulls her back up to face him. It’s all very romantic! Maybe they’re just rehearsing for this rom-com, in which the pair play two people who are in a fake relationship together. (We all know how that ends—with them falling in love.) Or perhaps there’s something more serious happening between the two.
This drama has lit the internet ablaze with memes and speculation, of course—with plenty of excitement for the film as well. If this is a PR stunt, it’s definitely working.
But let’s take a minute to remember that this is nothing new for Powell. He had wonderful chemistry with co-star Zoey Deutch in another recent rom com, Netflix’s Set It Up. Those two still have an impeccable connection, years since the film’s release. Though this celeb drama is marvelous and juicy to see play out, taking it so seriously feels slightly condescending to Powell’s talent in the rom-com field. He’s a master of the genre; that means he’s great at looking like he’s really in love with his scene partner.
