After breaking up in real-life in November 2021, Outer Banks stars Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline still had to play a couple on the show’s upcoming third season. Find out how they handled it.

Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline made the most of a potentially awkward situation.

The stars of Netflix’s Outer Banks, which returns for season three Feb. 23, announced their break-up in November 2021. The pair, who began dating in June 2020, met on the set of the popular teen drama.

So, when it came to filming season three just months after the split—in which their characters John B and Sarah are still very much together—there were possibly tumultuous waters ahead.

“Mads and I have been working together now for 30 episodes, and we made a promise to each other before we even started dating that the work was always going to come first,” Stokes told Entertainment Weekly. “No matter what happens in our personal lives, and the ways that life sometimes takes you in different directions, that we’re always going to honor the work.”

Cline was in agreement, saying she and Stokes have “always shown up for each other when it comes to work and this show.”

“We had a working relationship before we had a personal relationship, and our job from day one has always been to leave the show better than we found it,” Cline continued. “I’m really, really happy and I’m very proud of the work this season, and I’m incredibly grateful for my co-stars and their professionalism and just how talented each and every one of them are.”

When it comes to season three,—which will pick up in the aftermath of John B, Sarah and Kie (Madison Bailey), Pope (Jonathan Daviss), JJ (Rudy Pankow) and Cleo (Carlacia Grant) fleeing North Carolina—Stokes teased a storyline for John B and Sarah that probably hit pretty close to home.

“Love isn’t supposed to be easy,” he said. “It’s not supposed to be something that comes naturally. Part of me wants to continue down the road of peace for John B and Sarah, but if there’s anything we know about this show, it’s that it’s going to take you for a wild ride.”

Stokes continued, “They’re definitely, yet again, going to be tested, and hopefully the fans understand it through the lens of what they’re going through and the circumstances that they’re put under.”

Sounds familiar.