Come on!  So much has happened.  Take another look and let us know what you think.  Are Rob and Kristen together and dating now?  Is Robsten on?

Yes, yes we know.  Everyone wants an update on our previous story about whether Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart are dating.   We’ve started it a thousand times, had great plans to get it done earlier, and then something else was alleged, then another something… 

Frankly, there was so much in the way of allegations, rumors, “incriminating pictures”, tweets, stories from unnamed “sources” and on and on that the entire thing got too insane.  How in the world do we deal with it all?

So, we’re going to break it down and try our best to keep it sort of simple.  It’s still a lot of information.  Are Rob and Kristen together now?  Oh boy, here we go…

The Evidence

As we stated in our story back in March, there didn’t really appear to be much in the way of actual “evidence” out there.  Just a whole ton of speculation.  We’ll be honest.  We don’t give much weight at all to stories that quote unnamed sources, stuff from gossip columnists, what is said by the paparazzi, and all of the rest of the hoopla.  If you take away all of that, there’s really not much left.  That’s a good thing, though, because it allows us to focus.  We’re going to look at a couple basic things.

If they are together, are they trying to keep it secret?

This is a very  important question as we will get into why later on.  We think based on what we have seen, we will have to assume that the answer to this question is “yes”.  Rob and Kristen have never once been seen out in public behaving as a romantic couple.  No holding hands, no kisses, etc.  Therefore, if they are together we will go on the assumption that they do not wish it to be a known fact. 

What Have Rob and Kristen Actually Said?

As we stated, there is very little actual, sourced information from people that have nothing to gain from “Robsten” out there, even now.  The stars themselves have given virtually no interviews on the subject since the filming of New Moon began.  The only direct quote on the subject we have is from Robert’s interview with Entertainment Tonight, which aired on April 24, 2009 (at approximately 1:30):

RP:  There was some magazine doing a thing about me and Kristen the other day…

MH:  Gossip that links Robert Pattinson with a slew of Hollywood hotties, including his Twilight lady love, Kristen Stewart.  The final secret is:  they’re platonic friends. 

TA:  I mean, if you even talk to a girl, she’s your girlfriend, right?

RP:  Yeeeah…in reality, yeah.  [laugh] It is weird–and especially people who, you know like, aren’t famous…

A longer, fuller quote ran in an ET promo for the interview:

“It becomes a joke. There was some magazine doing a thing about me and Kristen the other day and when you look at it and realize it’s on the front of a magazine. You realize that people are actually reading that even though how ridiculous it is. It’s really bizarre.”

That quote seems pretty clear to us.  He is, however, calling the fact that magazines were doing stories on it ridiculous and bizarre, though–so we suppose we can accept that some people would not considered the quote a complete denial.  And unfortunately, that’s all there is in the way of direct quotes from Rob or Kristen about the situation.

Looking at Twitter

We hate Twitter…might as well being honest here.  Anyone can open any account and say absolutely anything and no one can verify a single thing.  So many outright lies and inaccuracies are spread through Twitter.  We will look at one particular tweet, though, since it alleges to be an eyewitness report of Rob and Kristen making out in May after a Sam Bradley concert in Vancouver.  Per “model/athlete/trainer/coach/blogger” aliciabellelite:

eww, kristen stewart is smoking and making out with rob pattinson right in front of me 

The tweet has a couple of pluses in the “valid” department.  One, the woman in question who did the tweet does appear to work part-time for the venue of the concert, per her earlier tweets.  She would, therefore, have had access to the backstage area of the venue after the concert, when she alleges the two were making out.  And secondly, this tweet was done “live”:  that is, at approximately the time it was supposed to have occurred.  We are extremely suspicious of tweets that occur after the event. 

However, not everything looks perfect, though.  She posted a pic of Rob and Kristen at the concert.  This is only significant because she indicates that she asked earlier to take a photo of Rob and he requested she not do so.  She later took a photo later anyway, surreptitiously.  She also immediately followed the “making out” tweet with a plug for her website and her personal training career–that’s never something that ups someone’s validity quotient.   And then, finally, she appears to have run to People Magazine with the story:

“Robert was leaning against the wall, his arms around Kristen, and they were full-on making out, totally acting like a couple,” says Vancouver nightclub waitress Alicia Bell in the new issue of People.

Now things are starting to look not quite right.  We’ll go back to our initial question asking if Rob and Kristen are together, are they trying to be secret about it?  If you think the answer to that question is yes (and we do), then the idea that the two would be making out in front of the band, the employees of the venue (who they don’t know), and anyone else who managed to be backstage that night seems very hard to swallow.  This, along with everything else, makes the tweet not hold much weight with us.

So, what else is there?  Oh yes…

The Morning After at The Charlie Hotel

It’s the smoking gun.  The bloody handkerchief.  It’s the bagged, tagged evidence to end all evidence, right?  Or is it?  Let’s take a look at the paparazzi video and photographs of Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart at The Charlie Hotel the morning after the MTV Movie Awards in June.

The X17 Online website claimed the following in the text to their story on the morning after the MTV Awards:

After the awards show Rob and Kristen headed to Cecconi’s for a bite to eat, and the duo left the trendy eatery around 11pm, and they were followed by a police escort to The Charlie Hotel in West Hollywood…The lovebirds booked themselves a private chateau, and we didn’t see them again until noon, when they emerged from their bungalow, looking like they’d both just rolled out of bed!

They ratchet up the romance with this quote from the paparazzo that took the photos:

“Rob was preoccupied with getting all of his stuff in the car and Kristen was hiding behind her sunglasses looking a little tired, but waiting to say goodbye.  Right before Rob got into the SUV, the couple stood behind the car door and I’m pretty sure there was a brief kiss!”

Let’s go through it piece by piece.

According to numerous reports Rob and Kristen did indeed appear to go to the restaurant Cecconi’s for dinner after the awards.  However, various people have also stated that they were not there alone, they were with Rob’s manager and agent, and possibly others.  So the text is misleading on this point. 

And we’re not buying the report of a police escort to The Charlie Hotel.  At all.  First off, why would Rob, Kristen, or their management call for a police escort back to the hotel?  The only reason we can imagine would be if they were being surrounded or harassed by the paparazzi or fans.  However, not a single photograph of the two at that restaurant, leaving that restaurant, or going or “checking into” The Charlie Hotel has been seen.  Not one.  Frankly, we think it’s completely made up.

The report makes it sound as if these paparazzi were present during the police escort and watched the two check in.  But again, they didn’t take a single photo if that was the case, which we find hard to believe. 

So what we are left with are the photos and video of the next day around noon.  They do indeed show Rob and Kristen at the black SUV loading things into his car.  Kristen Stewart’s mother is present, as is a man with grey hair–some people have identified this man and Kristen Stewart’s grandfather, but we doubt this–[Edit - a commenter has indicated the man in question is most likely the owner of The Charlie Hotel] as well as a young woman with long brown hair and a man who may be a driver or security.  The woman with long brown hair has never been identified, to our knowledge.

Fortunately, there is video as well, and the video is far more telling than the photographs.  The video appears to be shot through the gaps in some type of fence or behind some obstacle (inside a car? it is not clear). 

First off, we note that there appear to be at least two paparazzi at the location:  two shooting video, perhaps another shooting photographs.  Their conversation during the video provides some interesting insights.

Paparazzi #1 - Dude, she’s in there.

Paparazzi #2 - No the both–he’s still on the side of the car.

Paparazzi #1 - Yeah, but she’s there, too. 

Paparazzi #2 - Who?

Paparazzi #1 - Kristen.

Now, this is a little confusing, because according to their written statements the paparazzi didn’t see Rob and Kristen again “until they emerged from their bungalow“.  The implication in that statement is that they witnessed the two come out of a (shared) bungalow.  However, if that was the case, why did the paparazzi sound excited and surprised and comment that Kristen happened to be there, too?  And if the two emerged from the bungalow together, where is that footage?  We can only assume there is no such footage.

Kristen’s mother seems very comfortable and mothering toward Rob in the footage.  Rob gives her a hug, she is seen smoothing his hair, etc.  Later in the footage we see Rob talking to someone in a black or dark grey Mini Cooper.  Kristen has a very similar black Mini Cooper, and I think it is fair to assume that this is most probably her car and Rob was speaking to Kristen.  He smiles, talks a little and then waves goodbye and gets into the black SUV which was apparently taking him to the airport.

Oh the “kiss” that the paparazzo alleges?  There isn’t one.  Anywhere.  That is a total lie.

That’s pretty much all the footage shows.  So, we get to a big question that we don’t think can be answered by the footage that was made available to us by the paparazzi.

Were Rob and Kristen aware that they were being photographed?

This is a huge question.  At no point does anyone really stare toward the cameras.  The paparazzi in question speak fairly normally (not whispering), so we can assume they were far enough away not to be concerned that they would be overheard or were concealed in some fashion (as evidenced by their video).  The entire group appears to be acting rather normally.  Rob, in particular, who tends to put his head down as soon as he is aware he is being photographed is just standing around normally.  If the group was not aware the paparazzi were around, we would argue that this tape is actual pretty strong evidence that Kristen and Rob are not together.  He is getting ready to leave for several month’s worth of filming, and although Mrs. Stewart garners a hug from him before leaving, Kristen gets nothing more than a laugh and a wave. 

Of course, it is more than possible that the two would not show any affection in public just in case there were photographers around. 

Which begs the question:  Why else would Kristen Stewart be at this hotel, unless she was staying with Rob?  Well, if it were not for the MTV Movie Awards the previous night, we would agree.  However, it is pretty standard practice for even L.A.-based actors to be put up in a hotel prior to big awards shows so that they can have the hair, makeup, and wardrobe teams come there to get the star ready for the red carpet and the cameras.  Summit obviously put Rob up at the hotel for the awards, but did they do the same for Kristen?  Honestly, we don’t know.  Maybe, maybe not. 

So this evidence is all very intriguing.  Obviously, if Rob and Kristen were sharing a bungalow, there’s no question that the two are (or have been) together.  Unfortunately, though, the evidence doesn’t go quite that far.

The Verdict

Every tabloid magazine, gossip columnist and a whole heap of fans think this is a done deal.  It is screamed from the headlines every day:  “Rob and Kristen are in Love!”  Frankly, though, we don’t think it’s nearly so cut and dried.  Is there some circumstancial stuff out there?  Yes.  But if you take away the gossip columnist’s ramblings from “unnamed sources” and silly things like photographs where the two are “looking really intently at each other” and just look at the actual evidence, it’s not nearly so overwhelming.  We would not call it a sure bet.  At all.

We will say the following.  It does appear that Kristen Stewart is no longer living with Michael Angarano.   The two have not really been seen together since April.  If Michael was off doing a film this would be understandable, but it appears he is in the Los Angeles area.  The two may be taking a break or lying low for the cameras, but we’re guessing that the relationship is probably no longer solid.  However, that does not necessarily mean that Rob and Kristen are together. 

We also believe that there is no great Summit conspiracy to keep the two apart.  Studios may discourage stars from dating, but we doubt there are signed contracts to that effect.  If Rob and Kristen are together and wanted it to be known, they would do so, in our opinion.  The fact that they haven’t gives us pause.  Kristen had no problem whatsoever being public with her relationship with Michael.  Do Rob and Kristen just want privacy?  Or are we not seeing anything because there is nothing to see?

There’s enough smoke here and elsewhere, though, for us to wonder.  If you take the various possibilities (a casual thing, they were together, they are together, etc.) we suppose it’s a possibility based on what we’re seeing.  Until we hear from the two involved–or until one of the two makes a proveable cross-country visit and is seen with the other–we’ll just move this to unresolved.  Frankly, we wouldn’t be surprised at all to hear that they are were together at this point…but neither would we be surprised to hear that they aren’t and never actually were.

Whew.  So nearly 2500 words later we get to…UNRESOLVED.  Not very satisfying, but that’s the way it is…for now.

You can read our update to this story here.

Tags: dating, girlfriends, kristen stewart, sam bradley, twitter

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 5th, 2009 at 7:19 pm and is filed under Relationships, Unresolved. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.