The Southern states are known for their distinctive style of hospitality as well as their alluring sense of etiquette. ‘Southern Charm,’ which chronicles the lives of a bunch of elites from Charleston, South Carolina, attempts to convey that spirit through a somewhat opposing representation. Thanks to the creation of Bryan Kestner and Whitney Sudler-Smith, audiences gain insight into the ensemble members’ professional and personal lives as they navigate through Southern culture and history in this reality show.
Since its debut in 2014, the viewership of Bravo’s ‘Southern Charm’ has grown owing to the distinct personalities and drama in the cast members’ lives, with a special emphasis on their romantic connections. With the show’s love dynamics shifting all the time, Austen and Olivia’s connection captured the attention of viewers in season 8.
Austen and Olivia’s Connection Was Simply Tumultuous
Since Austen Kroll’s entrance into the ‘Southern Charm’ family in season 4, he has had his fair share of ups and downs in his career and love life. While he has made significant developments in his professional life with new entrepreneurial ventures, his romantic life hasn’t been that stable. From his first bond with co-star Chelsea Meissner, he went on to have quite a few connections with other cast members on the show like Lindsay Hubbard, Ciara Miller, and later, in season 7, Madison LeCroy. On the other hand, Olivia Flowers joined the cast in season 8 as the love interest of Austen Kroll.
Both Austen and Olivia knew each other over a year before the show aired and their journey is well documented in the show. The latter was, however, a resident of Los Angeles prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, working as a Production Assistant and model. Now that she was back home in Charleston, living with her parents, her presence on the show was ascertained after she was smitten with a DM from Austen. After speculations since late 2021, Austen finally revealed to US Weekly that he officially began dating Olivia in May 2022.
Fans, then, got their first glance of the duo together at Kathryn Dennis’ “Great Katsby” birthday party. While their bond blossomed pretty quickly, there were a few instances that tested the strength of their bond. Olivia was first put off by how agitated Austen became around his ex, Madison LeCroy. Later, Austen felt uncomfortable when the two women connected at a party; the two eventually resolved their differences.
However, Austen’s remark in an episode about wanting to take things slow with Olivia did take her aback. Therefore, Olivia decided to take another man, Marcie Hobbs’ friend, as a date to Patricia Altschul’s dog wedding, which prompted Austen to hang out with his ex, Ciara Miller, along with some other friends. However, they later brushed the misunderstandings aside, especially after Austen confessed that he only wanted to date her.
Austen and Olivia Couldn’t Make Things Work in The Long Run
Although Austen and Olivia undeniably shared some great times together, they are no longer romantically involved in any way, shape, or form. In May 2022, the duo had gone on a couples’ trip to Napa with co-stars Taylor Ann Green and Shep Rose (they too have since broken up), and the pictures shared by the latter couple clearly showed the former holding hands and having a good time. They looked happy together and even reportedly went out quite a few times after the trip. But alas, after about six or seven months together, they decided to call it quits.
In the first week of August 2022, Olivia had told Us Weekly that she and Austen were “in a good place” and still dating each other. She expressed, “We had an incredible summer together and traveled and we’re still good. We’re just having fun. We went to really cool places, and you always get to know someone on another level when you travel with them. And we got to kind of relax once the cameras left and the shows stopped.”
Olivia continued, “We just kind of really got to know each other and figure out if this was something we wanted and we’re definitely in each other’s lives.” She even went as far as to state she enjoyed watching the show so as to see their relationship progressing, which is honestly a part of how they became a fan favorite. However, by the time late fall 2022 rolled around, rumors about there being trouble in paradise had started swirling around. That’s especially because Olivia unfollowed Austen on Instagram after the reunion episode.
The social media activity brought out a lot of questions among Austen and Olivia’s fans as there were no other signs hinting at their separation. Yet, it soon became clear that the duo had indeed parted ways for good – the former has since even revealed that they were only officially together for “about six, seven months.”
Nevertheless, it’s evident neither Austen nor Olivia regrets their decision to separate as they have since seemingly found happiness with other people. While the former is rumored to be in a happy healthy relationship with Audrey Pratt at the moment, the latter has been blissfully involved with Dallas native Alex for over a year. We can only wish that there is no negative news associated with it and that Austen and Olivia live a happy life ahead.
Read More: Is Southern Charm Real or Scripted?
