Actor Chase Stokes may live a life of luxury in Los Angeles, but his heart still lies in the South. “I was in Malibu the other day,” the baseball-cap-wearing Netflix star tells Alexa over Zoom, “and it was high tide, and we couldn’t even go to the beach because the water rose to the shore.” He can’t wait to be back in Charleston, where even at high tide, “you have 50 yards of sand where you can take the dogs and sprint, or go in the water without immediately being on the verge of frostbite.” You can take the boy out of the Outer Banks…
Or should we say the “Outer Banks”. The hit series about a tight-knit group of (mostly) working-class teenagers searching for treasure was filmed in South Carolina, replacing its northern parent, for four seasons – with some notable departures for its characters who travel the world. More recently, Stokes’ character, the brash but kind-hearted adventurer John B Routledge, found himself in the Orinoco Basin of South America, searching for the lost city of gold, El Dorado . Part of the exhibit’s appeal, he says, “is David Attenborough’s National Geographic ‘Planet Earth’-type landscapes.” I never thought I’d get to play a version of what I like to think was a young Indiana Jones.
He has the square jaw and self-effacing charisma that suits this costume, that’s for sure. And Stokes knows his sources. He may only be 32, but his taste in movies is old school – and Spielberg’s iconic archaeologist is at the top of the list. “One of the proudest purchases I ever made, after finishing the first season of Outer Banks, was an original poster from Raiders of the Lost Ark,” he says. “It was just my thing. I grew up with this franchise! Other favorites? “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”; “10 Things I Hate About You.” He loves quality romantic comedies.
Stokes is probably making money for first edition posters now, but just like John B, he keeps his origins scrappy. Her starring role on “Outer Banks,” after a string of small roles on shows including “Stranger Things,” came just as her bank account was tantalizingly close to zero. “Yesterday I was out with my girlfriend” – that would be megawatt country star and former Alexa cover star Kelsea Ballerini – “and we walked past the very first apartment I had when I I moved to Los Angeles,” he recalls. “It was this junior studio, less than 300 square feet. She said: “If you had to, would you go back to that apartment and do it again? » He said yes, without hesitation. “It was really a nice thing to give me that little reminder: I would definitely go back and make the trip again.” (Last year, Ballerini shared the affectionate DMs she initially sent to Stokes to get his attention.)
It seems unlikely he’ll ever have to, as the new season of “Outer Banks” heats up. Released on October 10, the first episode sees John B and his friends, who call themselves the Pogues (named after the little fish, not the band), living their dream by opening a surf shop on the island of Kildare. But don’t get too comfortable: this season takes the cast to ever more remote locations. Filming lasted a year to the day, much longer than previous seasons, Stokes says. “Part of it was the strike, and the other part was that we filmed in Morocco for what was supposed to be two weeks and ended up being two months.” What happened? “Oh, I think I’m probably not legally allowed to say all sorts of things,” he replies playfully.
The series first appeared in April 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, offering a much-needed dose of “Goonies”-style escapism mixed with eye candy and “Gossip Girl”-style drama. . This season saw John B and the rest of the Pogues, JJ (Rudy Pankow), Kiara (Madison Bailey), Pope (Jonathan Daviss) and Sarah (Madelyn Cline), searching for a sunken ship with treasure to be found. board, a quest launched by John. B’s father has disappeared. “We pushed the limits of this really massive scavenger hunt show about these kids who are constantly in over their heads,” Stokes says with a laugh.
Last month, Stokes also starred in the Netflix film “Uglies,” an adaptation of the YA book about a dystopian society centered on plastic surgery. And he has two more films in the works soon, starting with the military drama “Valiant One,” starring Lana Condor, in which Stokes plays a soldier’s office jockey thrown unexpectedly into the line of fire. “It’s not the world of shoot-’em-ups and things exploding,” says Stokes. “And don’t get me wrong, I would die to do something like that!” It’s just a very different story. Next is “Marked Men,” an upcoming drama from the director of “The Notebook.” “I love Nick Cassavetes,” Stokes says. “He was for me a filmmaker of all times, like the Holy Grail, and he is a friend and mentor for life.”
The Maryland native also maintains close ties with his Outer Banks comrades; his phone rings during our interview and it’s his co-star, Bailey, recording. “I’m very grateful that we all stayed close,” Stokes says, “because when your life changes like that, there’s not much. other people who can understand it. To still have that connective tissue and that relatability, it’s a really special thing.
“Outer Banks” fans know that the Pogues have a uniform of sorts, an aesthetic of cutoffs and tanks that nods to the unrelenting humidity of a Carolina summer. John B also wears an iconic gray bandana around his neck, a well-worn talisman that has helped him get through some things. (It has also been the subject of speculation that it may be an ancient artifact, which would make for a great plot twist.)
Off-screen, Stokes is adept at switching between upscale and super casual. “What’s so fun about fashion is that it allows you to express yourself and there aren’t really any rules,” he says. “If anyone tries to make a rule about this, they are deceiving themselves and trying to deceive you.”
Our shoot with Stokes sees him reflect on the evolution of his own style.
“That seems really high,” he said. “I think at 32 it’s time for me to dress my real age. To dress the way I traditionally would, as opposed to what the world sees me on TV.
“I think at 32 it’s time for me to dress my real age. To dress the way I traditionally would, as opposed to what the world sees me on TV.
As Ballerini’s boyfriend, he’s been known to wear cowboy boots, trucker caps, and even a “trucker’s wife” t-shirt in a goofy Instagram post. When he and Ballerini walk the red carpet, they make it count. The couple, who have been together since February 2023, were a study in contrasts at this year’s Met Gala: Ballerini with sheer panels and flowers in keeping with the “Garden of Time” theme and Stokes, a dark, shimmering rock star . , shirtless under a Michael Kors tuxedo. “Michael Kors’ early work was very inspired,” he notes. “It was a dark contrast to what Kels was wearing.” I ask how her first gala went. Is it easy to rub shoulders with style creators from all over the world? “God, no,” he laughed. “I struggle with imposter syndrome so much.”
When it was all about to be too much, Stokes hopped on a plane to Charleston at 4 a.m. that evening, then spent the next day on a boat in the middle of the ocean. It’s a stunning lifestyle, and he makes sure to create quiet moments to remember what’s going on. “When life moves at this pace, it’s so important to align with forms of normalcy, outside of just the workspace or outside of places like the Met, to make sure you have just a moment to touch the grass,” says Stokes. “Because everything can become so fast and intense that you lose track of what’s real and what’s not.”
One of the most reliable ways to keep your head on straight amid flashes and flattery? Date someone whose fan base often has no idea who you are. When Stokes goes out with his girlfriend, he says, he’s likely to have someone’s smartphone thrust into his hand so he can take a photo of its owner with Ballerini. “They say, ‘I know you’re the boyfriend.’ Can you take a photo of us? You control your ego a little,” he says with a laugh.
Life with a singer, he explains, is a study in a different kind of art. “It’s fun to watch a song go from a voice memo on the back porch to mixing, mastering and finalization,” he explains. And he’s been there for some defining moments, like the first time Ballerini’s mother heard her new ballad, “Sorry Mom.”
“[Kelsea] was on a retreat and I took his mother to dinner,” Stokes recalled. “And she texted me, ‘Hey, I want you to listen to this with my mom.’ We sat in the car and I played it, and I saw his mom get really emotional, because it’s such a beautiful song. It’s such an honest rendition of what any child would hopefully want to say to their mother at some point. She looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, “There’s nothing to be sorry about.” ” She wasn’t the only one with tears in her eyes, he adds: “I was a wreck! »
But then he shrugs: what’s the point of life if not occasionally letting yourself be destroyed (or exploring one)? “‘Outer Banks,’ Stokes says, “is kind of a metaphor for life: you’re never really prepared for anything as much as you’d like to be. Life will throw you curve balls. And it’s all about who you keep close and how you approach things. We like to think we have our shit together – and we rarely, rarely do.
Editor: Serena French; Stylist: Ashley Pruitt for The Only Agency; Photo editor: Jessica Hober; Talent booker: Patty Adams Martinez; Groomer: Catherine Furniss for Art Department LA using Balmain Hair; Fashion Assistant: Mariah “Kaij” Jackson; Production Assistant: Zach Roy
