‘Outer Banks’ Chase Stokes talks dating Kelsea Ballerini while working with his ex

Chase Stokes has catapulted to a level of fame very few ever experience over the last four years.

Thanks to his beloved character on the hit Netflix show “Outer Banks,” Stokes has become one of the most recognizable and sought after faces in Hollywood.

And in an interview with InStyle, Stokes says he’s taking it all one step at a time.

Chase Stokes on sharing his relationships with the public. 

“Life is so crazy,” he tells InStyle. “All I can do right now is control the next right thing.”

As Stokes continued, he addressed the thing many of his fans are most curious about; working with his ex-girlfriend Madelyn Cline, while dating one of country music’s biggest stars, Kelsea Ballerini.

Currently, Stokes and Cline, who play love interests on “Outer Banks,” are working on the fourth season of the show.

Stokes and Cline were real life lovers for over a year from June 2020 to November 2021 before amicably ending their relationship and vowing to not let their personal lives come between their beloved characters, Sarah Cameron and John B.

While talking with InStyle, Stokes said, “I think when you have so many incredible people around both of us and you have such a shared love for something, I can’t imagine a world where we would disassociate,” he said of playing opposite Cline.

“Maddie and I have really always made it a point that this show and these characters are components of our life that changed everything for us. …If we were not to honor that, we would be dishonoring ourselves and a lot of people who have invested into this show and these characters,” Stokes continued.

“Although things change and life takes different shapes and forms,” he continues, “one thing that’s always stood true for her and I is that the show is our first love.”

In an interview with Cosmopolitan in February 2023, Cline made a similar statement regarding working with her ex.

“We always said that the job remains untouched. Nothing else, personal or negative, will touch the job. And while that’s not always easy, our job is to leave the show better than we found it, to leave the season better than we found it. And I’m really appreciative of that,” she told the magazine.

And while Cline has since made the decision to keep her romantic relationships private going forward, Stokes said he loves sharing his relationship with Ballerini with the world.

“Look, it’s a delicate dance for everybody, balancing what’s public and private,” he admitted to InStyle. “For me, it can be a bizarre thing to watch people hide their relationships.”

Chase Stokes gets honest about life with Ballerini and working with Cline. 

“Because it’s natural, you get so excited to talk about your person who wins something, you want to celebrate all the moments within life,” he continued. “So I think for us, it was kind of a no-brainer to be a little open.”

“We just really value real life. So I think being in a relationship, but hiding it from the world, would feel very false to both of us,” Stokes said of his relationship with Ballerini.

“I’ve gotten a lot of texts from friends from back home when Kels and I started dating,” he admits. “They’re like, ‘Ah, there he is: Hollywood went Hollywood, and now he’s getting back to his roots.’”