Madelyn Cline 'Didn't Know Which Way Was Up' After Chase Stokes Breakup as Relationship Felt Like 'My Identity'

03/20/2025 04:02 PM

The 'Outer Banks' costars dated for less than two years before their public split in 2021

Madelyn Cline is opening up about her breakup with Chase Stokes.

During the March 19 episode of Jake Shane's Therapuss podcast, the actress, 27, shared how dating — and later splitting from — her Outer Banks costar impacted her life. Explaining that this was her first public relationship, Cline, 27, said she didn't know how to navigate the situation.

"I think at the time I didn't realize what the repercussions [were] of inviting so many people into something, let's be honest, something that's intimate," she acknowledged.

"I didn't understand. I was just so in love. And, you know, people loved it. I think they loved it because of us, but they also loved John B and Sarah, first and foremost," she added, referring to their Outer Banks characters.

Related: Madelyn Cline and Chase Stokes' Relationship Timeline

Cline and Stokes met in 2019 shortly before they began filming the fan-favorite Netflix series, in which they play a couple. They took their relationship public in 2020 and called it quits less than two years later.

"You look at any public breakup and so many people are invested, and of course that was really hard," she told Shane. "And also, we still, to this day, share a very, very big… this huge thing that is a massive part of both of our lives. So, I think, yeah, it was really hard to separate, but also like any breakup, you grow out of it, which is great."

"For sure there was a period of time there where I truly did not know which way was up, which way was down because that — Outer Banks and that public relationship, was kind of my identity," Cline continued. "And I was like, 'Who the f--- am I?' I'm still figuring that out. But figuring that out and who you are in the public space just is truly such a mind f---."

Related: Madelyn Cline Is 'Tired of People Coming for Me' Over Her and Chase Stokes' Outer Banks Characters: 'We've Had Enough' (Exclusive)

Years later, Cline said she still doesn't have the answer to tuning out the chatter that comes with a career in the spotlight. 

"I don't think there really is an easy way to shut it out," she admitted. "I think it's just ultimately a part of what we do. But I also think I'd rather make the decisions that feel correct to me and if people have opinions, they're totally entitled to those opinions. I think the best thing is just to keep my head down and just keep doing what I'm doing."

Following their breakup just before season 3 of Outer Banks began production, Cline and Stokes continued to film together. In an interview with PEOPLE in February 2023, she explained that the pair remained "professional" on set despite what was going on between them personally.

"At the end of the day, there's always been a safe space with the job," she said. "We've said from day one, our job is always to leave the show and the season better than when we left it last. And everybody is still very much a family."

Earlier that month, Stokes — who has since moved on with singer Kelsea Ballerini — shared a similar sentiment with Entertainment Weekly, calling Cline an "incredible person" and a "rockstar" actress.

"Mads and I have been working together now for 30 episodes, and we made a promise to each other before we even started dating that the work was always going to come first," he told the outlet. "And that no matter what happens in our personal lives, and the ways that life sometimes takes you in different directions, that we're always going to honor the work. That stayed 100 percent truthful this season."

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The first four seasons of Outer Banks can be streamed on Netflix.