Who did Austin Butler bring to the Oscars?

Austin Butler turned heads when he brought an unexpected guest with him when he walked on the Oscars red carpet. The actor stepped out onto the carpet wearing a double-breasted Saint Laurent suit, with long-time girlfriend model and actress Kaia Gerber nowhere in sight.

While many expected he would bring Gerber with him, Butler actually brought his long-time agent and best friend, James Farrell as his guest to the surprise of viewers.

Who is James Farrell?

Farrell has been Butler’s agent since the actor was 17 years old, the actor explained in an earlier interview with Access Hollywood.

“We were friends first, and I would not have my career without him. The amount of times that he’s helping me to decide on whether or not to do something or he’s pushed me to. He’s believed in me in moments where maybe I didn’t believe in myself.”

During the Oscar’s preshow, Butler noted the celebratory mood of the Oscars to host Ashley Graham.

“It’s just celebrating with all these beautiful people,” he said. “The thing that I didn’t realize ahead of time was the community that you build in these months leading up to tonight.”

“I just feel so honored and happy to get to celebrate with everybody,” he added.

Why was Kaia Gerber not at the Oscars?

While Gerber was unable to attend the show with Butler, it turns out that she was busy with her own film engagements, with her film ‘Bottoms’ premiering during the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas over the weekend.

The couple previously made their red carpet debut as a couple at last year’s Met Gala event, and have since been spotted together at various parties and other events.

Gerber has also been absent from Butler’s side during Butler’s ‘Elvis’ promotional events. But although the two did not walk the Cannes red carpet together, they were later spotted sharing a moment of PDA at the film festival.

A successful year for Butler for ‘Elvis’

The actor has had a successful award show circuit. In January, he won the Best Actor award at the Golden Globes and again at the BAFTA awards in February.

Butler is up for Best Actor at the 2023 Oscars, among other first-time nominees Colin Farrell and Brendan Fraser.