Rudy Pankow Defends His Girlfriend Elaine Siemek Amid Online Hate: “No One Should Go Through That”

Rudy Pankow is standing up for love. The 26-year-old actor has opened up about the hurtful online comments his girlfriend, Elaine Siemek, has faced since the couple made their relationship public. In an interview with Cosmopolitan, Rudy got candid about how tough it’s been for Elaine and why he felt it was important to speak up.

“I think a lot of people can intertwine a narrative and what they want to believe. And they take it out on someone that doesn’t deserve it. That’s unfortunate and it’s hard. And what’s even more unfortunate is that it’s not in my control. That’s why I spoke up — no one should go through something like that,” Rudy shared. 

Rudy and Elaine first met on the set of Outer Banks back in 2020, and their romance has been under the spotlight ever since. When Elaine began receiving hateful comments from fans, Rudy couldn’t stay silent. In August 2021, he took to Instagram with a heartfelt message asking fans to stop spreading lies and accusations about her.

“I’m here to call out the disrespect and harassment someone I love dearly is getting on a daily basis,” he wrote alongside a photo of the couple. “It has gotten to the degree where lies are being spread and accusations are being said that go [sic] beyond the normal ‘hate,'” he added.

Rudy made it clear that Elaine is nothing like the negative image some people have painted. “Not only is she not what she is being accused of being, she is the complete opposite and actively is so. Accusing someone you don’t know of being abusive and manipulative is not ok, especially when you don’t know the relationship personally,” he added.

Despite the constant scrutiny, Rudy assured fans that he and Elaine are very happy together, even if they don’t post about their relationship often. He urged his followers to “move forward in positivity and respect.”

In his chat with Cosmopolitan, Rudy reflected on the impact the situation had on him, saying that some fans did listen to his plea for kindness. But the experience made him think deeply about what really matters in life. “There’s a part of me that was like, Who do I truly care about? And that’s how I led my life after that,” he revealed.

Rumors have surrounded Rudy and Elaine’s relationship for years. In October 2022, Elaine had to shut down cheating allegations after a fan shared a photo of a couple kissing, falsely claiming it was her with another man. Elaine quickly set the record straight on Instagram, calling the rumor “exhausting and embarrassing.”