Nina Dobrev Shows PDA With New Boyfriend Austin Stowell, Are The Duo Getting Serious?

Nina Dobrev and Austin Stowell may have only sparked dating rumors a few weeks ago, however, it appears the duo are already getting serious. Dobrev and Stowell were spotted getting cozy with one another during the screening for Dobrev’s newest film, The Final Girls, in L.A. on Tuesday, June 16.

Witnesses dished to Us Weekly that Stowell remained by Dobrev’s side for the duration of the evening and was even spotted holding her hand during the movie.

“He called Nina ‘babe’ and gently put an arm around her waist,” the source confirmed.

Dobrev and Stowell first ignited romance rumors during friend Jamie King’s baby shower earlier this month, where witnesses say Dobrev was introducing the Whiplash actor as her boyfriend.

A source told Hollywood Life that Dobrev was excited to introduce Stowell to her close friends during the celebratory event.

“Nina introduced Austin as her boyfriend to people who didn’t know him. Most of the people there knew each other. They were glued to each other. Either holding hands the entire time to they had their arms around each other. They both seemed really happy, especially Nina.”

The duo were previously spotted showing some PDA during the Hallmark Shoebox event at The Improv in Hollywood on June 10, where witnesses say the couple looked infatuated with each other.

“[Nina] walked in with a few people including her new man. They stayed for the first comic and kissed three times while the performance happened! She was very affectionate with him and she was with other friends as well and she wasn’t afraid of being intimate around friends.”

As for how Dobrev and Stowell got together, another source dished to Hollywood Life that it was the duo’s mutual friend, Selena Gomez, who encouraged them to date.

“Selena and Austin became close friends while filming ‘In Dubious Battle’ in Atlanta. It was Selena who went on and on about how wonderful and beautiful and talented Nina is. Austin and Nina are both signed to the same agency CAA and had crossed paths before, but it wasn’t until spending time in Atlanta that they really got to know each other. This was back in January, so the two of them have been seeing each other since then.”

The source adds, “They’ve just recently decided to go public with their romance. So Selena could be considered a matchmaker.”

Austin is Nina’s first confirmed romance since the actress called it quits with longtime love and The Vampire Diaries co-star, Ian Somerhalder.

According to sources close to the former couple, Somerhalder is happy for Nina and her new romance.

“Ian actually knew about Nina’s new relationship, but he never really brought it up while on set. He respected that she didn’t want to hear about Nikki and she respected that he didn’t’ want to hear about Austin. One less thing to worry about: Ian is all about Nikki, his causes, the show and a handful of metaphysical stuff that goes through his mind. He just wants Nina to be happy, and if she is happy with Austin that is good enough for him.”

What do you think of Nina Dobrev’s new boyfriend, Austin Stowell?

[Image: Getty Images / Dimitrios Kambouris / Jason Merritt]