Selling the OC star Alex Hall denied romance rumors with co-star Tyler Stanaland in an interview with UsWeekly published on Tuesday, Dec. 20. Fans of the Netflix show have long speculated that the show’s two protagonists had an unhealthy work connection. The fact that Tyler already had a wife at the time of the shooting further added to the rumours.

In the interview, Hall made the following statement:

It didn’t occur to me until after the program aired when it was all over the news, and I couldn’t help thinking about it.

Alex Hall and Tyler Stanaland are not dating.

Tyler and Brittany Snow were rumored to be breaking up because of how close they were to Selling the OC actors, but Hall cleared the air. She told the newspaper that they are just friends and they rely on each other for emotional support. Hall, a 33-year-old real estate agent and divorcee, expressed sympathy for Tyler, despite not being able to speak on his behalf. She went on to say that dating was the last thing on her mind during the difficult time of her divorce. She continued by saying that dating has become “another duty” for her.

Fans had been berating the two for their inappropriate connection after the episode aired, but Hall claims her association with the Selling the OC actress had nothing to do with the couple’s breakup. It all started back in September when Tyler reportedly informed Brittany that one of his costars had tried to kiss him off-camera, as reported by PEOPLE. The newspaper also received word from a reliable source that Tyler’s participation in the program was the last straw. According to the same source:

Brittany was against Tyler appearing on the program, but he insisted. It was important to him to build his own reputation.

In the same issue of Us Weekly, Kayla Cardona, Tyler’s Selling the OC co-assumed nemesis of the star’s wife, said that Cardona isn’t the one the wife needs to worry about. She went on to say that Alex and Tyler are “extremely inappropriate” friends with each other. Besides, she said

To paraphrase, “I mean, terribly hypocritical… Because it’s pretty obvious I haven’t had any physical interaction with the man in question.” To clarify, you know what I mean. Never mind getting naked in front of him [like Brindle’s skinny-dipping challenge] or sit on his lap and suck your nose.

The split between Tyler and Brittany

It wasn’t long after Selling the OC debuted on Netflix that Tyler and Brittany made the announcement that they were separating. Instagram was the platform of choice for announcing the couple’s joint split. The “difficult choice” Brittany described in her writing did not come easily.

There was more to the statement:

“All parties involved in this choice really care about and respect each other. We’ve come to the conclusion that it’s crucial to check in with each other and make sure we’re all happy and content with the way we’re living our lives.”

The day after the couple announced their split, Alex Hall and Tyler were spotted together. When their closeness sparked relationship suspicions, Hall said:

Someone took a picture of us with their iPhone when we were at our favorite sushi place, quite close to the office.

She went on to say that together they were surrounded by their friends to support Tyler emotionally, so they were not alone.