Despite Robert Pattinson’s big screen career and Suki Waterhouse’s supermodel status, we don’t know much about their relationship. Both of these Brits prefer to keep their private life out of the public sphere. As their romance continues past the three-year mark, here’s a rundown of their secretive story.
July 2018
Pattinson and Waterhouse are first linked on July 30 when E! obtains photos of the pair kissing in the streets of London. Per the outlet’s report, the two saw a 9 p.m. showing of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again at Electric Cinema in Notting Hill. They then walked across the street for drinks at SoHo House until 1 a.m.
An eyewitness said the couple was open with their affection. “Along the way, they were very close and cuddled and kissed many times,”the source told E! News. “Robert was very affectionate to her and had his arm around her the whole way and Suki reciprocated by holding his hand and kissing it. They were very loved up and close. Robert stroked Suki’s hair and gave her another loving kiss.”
August 2018
Although neither Pattinson nor Waterhouse confirms the relationship, a source tells Us Weekly that the pair has been dating for months. The insider said the actors had “known each other and been around each other for a long time.” Other commonalities include “a love of music” and that they “are both really cool, nice and normal people and fun-loving.”
Both parties also have experience with keeping relationships with high-profile people low-key. Pattinson called off his engagement to FKA Twigs in late 2017. Previously, he dated Twilight co-star Kristen Stewart. Waterhouse’s dating history includes a two-year relationship with Bradley Cooper and dates with James Marsden.
An E! source says the pair is only “casually dating.” Since Pattinson had only recently ended a three-year relationship, “He isn’t looking for anything serious right now.”
The insider did express that the two “are definitely into each other” and are dating while Pattinson is in London filming The King. “Rob likes to have fun when he has breaks in-between filming and him and Suki have a great time together,” the source added.
At the end of the month, a Daily Mail report claimed that the couple had split.
September 2018
LaineyGossip disputed the Daily Mail story, sharing that Pattinson had FaceTimed Waterhouse walking home from a London pub in August. Per this outlet’s report, the couple were spotted at Miguel’s concert in Los Angeles.
Each also attended the Toronto International Film Festival for their respective projects this month. Pattinson was promoting High Life while Waterhouse walked the carpet for Assassination Nation.
October 2018
This month, the couple is photographed exiting London club Chiltern Firehouse at 2:15 a.m, seemingly confirming they were still together.
December 2018
Daily Mail captured the couple leaving a Christmas party on London’s Regent Street. Waterhouse and Pattinson stayed at the party, which guest list allegedly included Bradley Cooper until the early morning hours.
January 2019
Waterhouse and Pattinson spent her 27th birthday together, photographed leaving her party. A couple weeks later, the couple was caught by People holding hands after a run in London.
April 2019
Some fan accounts spot the couple out and about in New York in February and March. But in April, Pattinson makes his first public comments about his relationship with Waterhouse.
The Sunday Times asks Pattinson in an interview about Waterhouse, which he responds to by asking, “do I have to [talk about her]?” Then he goes into more detail about why he’s so private about his personal life:
“If you let people in, it devalues what love is. If a stranger on the street asked you about your relationship, you’d think it extremely rude. If you put up a wall it ends up better. I can’t understand how someone can walk down the street holding hands, and it’s the same as when I do it and a hundred people are taking your photo. The line between when you’re performing and when you’re not will eventually get washed away and you’ll go completely mad.”
However, he did tell the outlet that breakups with Stewart and FKA Twigs didn’t disillusion him to romance with a celebrity such as Waterhouse. “They were pretty long relationships, not like three months.”
May 2019
When it came time for Pattinson’s 33rd birthday, he and Waterhouse were photographed at Chateau Marmont. Pattinson’s friend Tom Sturridge was also in attendance for the celebrations, per People.
June 2019
Waterhouse and Pattinson went on a double date with another notoriously private couple, Taylor Swift and Joe Alwyn. They chose Hollywood’s San Vicente Bungalows, per Us Weekly. It’s a members-only club where photos aren’t allowed, so no one could photograph the dinner. But an onlooker told Us that both couples “were laughing and talking” throughout the evening. “They were at a table, just the four of them. Rob and Taylor were across from each other.”
One way this busy couple keeps in contact? FaceTime. During a June interview with Grazia, the reporter notes Waterhouse FaceTimes Pattinson during a photo shoot break.
An Us Weekly source reported that Waterhouse said, “I have to FaceTime my boyfriend” while backstage at the Moschino 2020 Resort Womenswear/Spring Menswear show. The onlooker said when Pattinson answered he asked, “Where are you, babe?” Waterhouse then showed Pattinson her outfit while “they were both laughing.” Per the insider, the couple “seemed very happy and in love” and that “both seem very into each other.”
August 2019
E! publishes a picture of Pattinson and Waterhouse strolling through London, something the outlet claims this couple does often in the area. Although they’ve kept it very quiet, this couple’s one-year relationship speaks volumes.
September 2019
In early September, photographer Sofia Malamute shares a photo of the couple cuddled together, captioned, “Ibiza, 2019.” Considering Waterhouse follows Malamute’s Instagram account, the picture was likely posted with her permission.
January 2020
After several months of quiet, Waterhouse and Pattinson confirm their relationship is still going strong. The pair is seen leaving Waterhouse’s 27th birthday party in London on January 12, per LaineyGossip. According to the photo agency, the couple has been snapped by paparazzi nearly every month since news they were dating became public. They celebrate her birthday at London’s Casa Cruz with an event attended by Liv Tyler, Georgia May Jagger, Cara Delevingne, and Ashley Benson. (Delevingne and Benson reportedly end things in April 2020.)
The couple also sparks engagement rumors at the start of the year, per the Daily Mail. While attending a Dior dinner party in Paris, Waterhouse can be seen wearing a ring on her left finger. However, neither confirms the news and she doesn’t make a habit of rewearing the jewelry.
May 2020
Pattinson essentially confirms that he’s quarantining with Waterhouse during an interview for GQ‘s June cover. According to the article, Pattinson has been sequestered “with his girlfriend” in the London apartment “the Batman folks rented for him” while production on the film is paused. That reporting is line with the DailyMail, which spots the couple leaving a grocery store in Notting Hill around mid-April. One item the couple carries in the photo-op? Kellogg’s corn flakes, one of the ingredients Pattinson uses for a…unique pasta dish he makes during an interview for the GQ profile.
July 2020
The couple confirms they’re still going strong, two years into their relationship, with a pair of public outings. On July 21, Pattinson and Waterhouse are photographed walking arm-in-arm around London’s Notting Hill. (You can see the rare photo here.) A source speaks to E! about the sighting, telling the outlet, “They weren’t recognized by anyone and they seemed to be in their own little world as they took a long stroll around the village chatting intently, pointing at properties and laughing together before they arrived at the club. They held hands the whole time or were linking arms and looked very happy.”
The following day, People publishes another photo of the couple on a walk. An insider tells the outlet, “They are very loved-up,” adding, “They haven’t been together that long. But everything seems on the fast track. They are always laughing and smiling at each other.”
September 2020
The pair’s most PDA-filled photo yet arrives about 12 days after Pattinson was reported to have tested positive for COVID-19, per CBS News. Although the studio never confirmed that report, production on The Batman was “temporarily paused.” It resumed in September, days after Pattinson and Waterhouse’s outing. In the photo, the couple sit on a London park bench with coffees, kissing while masks are pulled down to their chins.
October 2020
Pattinson’s recovery apparently only strengthened his relationship. A source tells E! that “Rob and Suki have definitely discussed getting engaged but are in no rush. Suki is not pressuring him and they are both very committed to each other.” The insider confirms the couple’s romance is “stronger than ever” after quarantine. “They love being low-key together and have very similar interests,” the source adds. “They are truly inseparable and in love.” The close pal even says Waterhouse has earned the seal of approval from Pattinson’s family. “[They] thinks they are a great match, better than any of his previous relationships,” per the source.
November 2020
Shortly after E! reported the two had discussed getting engaged, Pattinson and Waterhouse were photographed out with Pattinson’s parents in London. The two walked side-by-side behind Pattinson’s mom and dad on November 23. They opted not show any PDA in front of them or the photographers who captured this outing.
April 2021
After months out of the limelight, Waterhouse made headlines when she posted a selfie on herself on April 15. Eagle-eyed fans noticed that a photo of her kissing Pattinson was visible in the background.
Suki Waterhouse’s photo of her and Robert Pattinson kissing.
On April 19, Pattinson and Waterhouse were photographed out in London for the first time in 2021. The two held hands while walking in Notting Hill. Both dressed casually, wearing shorts and hoodies. It served as a rare public signal that a year into quarantine, the couple’s relationship remained strong.
July 2021
Waterhouse called out the HBO Max Gossip Girl reboot for making a joke at her expense. The joke in question: Teen public relations whiz Luna (Zión Moreno) is trying to talk Zoya (Whitney Peak) into stepping up her influencer game. She says, “When are you going to get it? As far as the press is concerned, he’s R-Patz and you’re Suki Nobody.”
In a now-deleted series of tweets, Waterhouse responded with the following: “Another day to be reminded that women can also be the patriarchy. Seeing critiques of patriarchy and sexism, then I get name-checked as somebody’s ‘nobody’ girlfriend,” per Glamour.
Some fans compared Waterhouse’s response to Taylor Swift’s tweet about Netflix’s Ginny & Georgia’s joke about her.
“Hey Ginny & Georgia, 2010 called and it wants its lazy, deeply sexist joke back. How about we stop degrading hard working women by defining this horse shit as FuNnY,” she wrote. “Also, @netflix after Miss Americana this outfit doesn’t look cute on you Happy Women’s History Month I guess.”
November 2021
A source gave E! a rare and brief update on how Waterhouse and Pattinson are doing three years into dating. They’re still together and doing great, naturally.
“They are very solid in their relationship,” the source said. During the rare public appearances they do together, they’re “always just totally joined at the hip. You can tell he’s completely in love with her,” the source said.
December 2021
Ahead of the holidays, Waterhouse and Pattinson were photographed on December 8 holding hands in New York City on a winter day date. Pattinson wore a monochrome blue look consisting of a hooded puffer jacket with matching blue pants. Waterhouse chose earth tones, stepping out in a brown Carhartt hat, rose-colored wool coat, and a black Dior cashmere shawl. It was their first time being photographed out together in months.
February 2022
Pattinson opened up a little about his life with Waterhouse in two interviews during his The Batman press tour.
To GQ, he spoke about her impact on his decision-making—and how she trolled him by talking with a repairman at their place about DC Comics.
Pattinson said Waterhouse was the reason why he changed the location for his GQ interview from the London Zoo to Holland Park. “I was talking to my girlfriend last night and she was, like, ‘You know, people don’t really like zoos.…’” he said. “I’d been thinking about a metaphorical thing. But then I was thinking that’s very wrong, a sad bear walking in circles. I just can’t help it. I’ll do it for every single element, every decision, in my life. What is the worst-case scenario for this decision?”
And with the repairman for their place’s boiler, “The guy came around the other day, and he just randomly started talking about what a DC [Comics] fan he is. And I’m sitting there facing the other direction, and my girlfriend just keeps continuing the conversation with him. And I’m looking at her like: Shut the fuck up!” He laughed. “Why are you doing this to me? She was very entertaining. Just talking to an obsessive fan.”
Pattinson later talked on Jimmy Kimmel Live! about Waterhouse’s emotional reaction watching The Batman, and how it made him more terrified of its release. “It was really her reaction that kind of changed the entire thing because I’m pretty sure she’s not normally into watching superhero movies,” he said, via Entertainment Tonight. “And just seeing that it was capturing her attention the entire time and then she held my hand and touched it [to her face] and I could feel a little tear. And I was like, ‘No way!’”
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May 2022
On Friday, May 6, the couple were spotted in Los Angeles after Waterhouse’s show at The Echo. She is currently touring to promote her new album, I Can’t Let Go. Pattinson was in a baseball cap and mask to keep a low profile. He was wearing a black jacket, grey t-shirt, and a pair of jeans with sneakers. His girlfriend was in jeans, and a colorful long sleeved shirt over a sparkling top. She had on a pair of black boots with a chunky heel.
They walked down the street as Waterhouse spoke into her phone, and Pattinson threw a casual arm around her waist. She responded with an embrace, continuing her conversation as they went.
December 2022
Robert Pattinson and Suki Waterhouse made their red carpet debut in Giza, Egypt, while attending the Dior fall 2023 menswear show. As the couple posed for the cameras, they giggled and flirted with one another like they were on their first date.
Later that month, on December 28, the couple were seen making their way through JFK like many holiday travelers. Waterhouse had a few bags over her shoulders, but Pattinson was pushing the majority of their luggage. from the trip on a cart, with a guitar slung across his back.
January 2023
Waterhouse and Pattinson started the new year together. People reported that the two threw a New Year’s Eve party at the Moxy Hotel on New York City’s Lower East Side. A source told People, “Rob and Suki had a great time. He had a table in the corner and was laughing a lot. He and Suki were by each other’s side the entire night. It was a fun evening.”
February 2023
Dirt reported that Pattinson and Waterhouse bought a home together in Hollywood Hills for $5.3 million, a seemingly another marker of how serious they are as a couple. The outlet noted that Pattinson bought it from Marissa Ribisi, the ex-wife of Beck, who formerly shared the Spanish Colonial Revival-style home with her then-husband.
Later in the month, The Times published an interview with Waterhouse, where she spoke more openly about their relationship than ever before. The outlet revealed they live in London together. “I’m shocked that I’m so happy with someone for nearly five years,” Waterhouse said, noting that they don’t really spend long apart.
On whether they give each other acting advice, she said, “Rob definitely isn’t getting advice from me about acting, but of course I’ll try and get him to help me with an audition before he falls asleep on the sofa.”
Communication makes their relationship work, she added: “I’m always incredibly excited when I see his name pop up [on my phone] or even a text, and I think he feels the same about me,” she said. “We’ve always got so much to say, and I find him hilarious.”
The two both grew up on southwest London and marvel over the fact they ended up together, with such similar journeys in the entertainment industry. “We always say that I never, ever would have thought I’d go out with a boy from Barnes, and he didn’t think he’d go out with a girl from Chiswick,” Waterhouse said.
She didn’t address her future plans with Pattinson explicitly but did say generally she hopes to start a family someday. “You have to be like, ‘I’m going be a sitting cow for a bit of time,’ but it’s going to be worth it,” she said of having children. “I can’t wait. I wish you could click your fingers to make it happen.”
March 2023
Waterhouse appeared in an interview on CBS Mornings to discuss how she prepared to play keyboardist Karen Sirko in the new Amazon Prime Video series Daisy Jones & The Six. It involved lots of practicing that she said Pattinson had to sit through in their new home.
“Did he enjoy that? Yeah, probably not,” she joked about the practice sessions. But she added that he has his own musical abilities — the actor performed two songs on the Twilight soundtrack, with credits for co-writing “Let Me Sign.”
“He’s actually way worse at being annoying about — well, because he’s an amazing pianist and a really great guitarist,” Waterhouse explained. “He’s amazing, honestly.”
He apparently plays his music for her a lot, and she quipped, “He wins the annoying competition.”
May 2023
Pattinson and Waterhouse made their Met Gala debut, posing on the red carpet alongside each other:
July 2023
Waterhouse and Pattinson signaled once more that all is going well between them when they were photographed holding hands while out for a walk in New York City on July 30.
Editorial Fellow
Savannah Walsh is an Editorial Fellow at ELLE.com.
