Keke Palmer Addresses Romance Rumors With Sean Evans

Keke Palmer’s love life has reached sweltering new Scoville levels, and that’s thanks to the internet’s favorite spice-lord, Sean Evans. The pair have fanned the flames of a possible romance for a few years, but things have gotten a lot more real after they were spotted sharing an intimate dinner in Brooklyn on June 12. Now, Palmer is getting real about the heat between herself and Evans.

The I Love Boosters star was asked about the viral photos of her dinner date with Evans during a chat with Jay Shetty at Cannes Lions on June 23. “Oh, we’re talking about this? First of all, I love Sean Evans. I love Sean. Hey, Sean! That’s my guy,” Palmer said, according to Page Six.

Though she wouldn’t get too specific, Palmer confirmed the two have grown close. “We’re hanging out ... [you] never know what could arise,” she said. “[We’re] just tak[ing] it day by day, one wing at a time, so to speak.”

Palmer and Evans met back in 2017 when Palmer first appeared as a guest on his YouTube show Hot Ones. Years after that experience, Evans admitted in 2023 that he had a crush on her when listing his favorite past guests on Chicken Shop Date. When Palmer returned to Hot Ones in 2025, she brought up the crush and planted a kiss on him “to see if there’s a spark.”

At that time, Palmer had recently ended her two-year relationship with ex-boyfriend Darius Jackson, with whom she shares her son Leo. More recently, Evans appeared as a guest on Palmer’s Baby, This Is Keke Palmer podcast in May, which added even more fuel to the romance rumors thanks to the pair’s easy, flirtatious banter. So, when the date night pics hit the internet just a couple weeks later, fans of the maybe-couple were already primed to go all in on this potential new love story.

Though it sounds like things are still in early stages between Palmer and Evans, it sounds like the duo is ready to start talking about their connection publicly — or, at least giving us a taste of their spicy chemistry for now.