Vanessa Hudgens is starting 2021 with a new relationship. E! reports that the 32-year-old actress is dating 24-year-old Pittsburgh Pirates baseball player Cole Tucker. "They are boyfriend and girlfriend," a source
told the outlet. "They rang in the New Year together."
Tucker and Hudgens were first seen together in November, having dinner at Pace in Laurel Canyon, CA. A witness told E! at the time that "they had a romantic dinner outside under the stars. They shared wine and food and had a great two-hour meal. Vanessa was giddy with laughter. She was looking over at Cole and couldn't contain her smile."
Hudgens most recently dated actor Austin Butler for eight years. The couple split a year ago, in January 2020. Two sources at the time told E! that being long distance was what ultimately did the duo in.
One source said Butler and Hudgens were "split for now" but are "going to see what happens. They have such a history and deep connection they could find their way back to one another. Right now she felt like he needed to go and be single and see if that's what he really wants."
A second source added that "they're just shooting on two different continents [Butler was working in Australia, and Hudgens had just finished a film project abroad] and it's a matter of distance. There is no bad blood at all, and they have a lot of respect for each other."
In November 2020, Hudgens spoke to Entertainment Tonightabout what she was looking for in her next partner.
"I feel like at the end of the day, it's just about having similar fundamentals and wanting the same things," she said. "Like, I am not picky, really. ... Like, I know what I want and I'm like, if someone comes into the picture and can give me all those things, then great, it doesn't matter if they're in the public eye or not—if anything I prefer them not to be but we'll see, we'll see."