Jesse Rutherford: what did Billie Eilish say about boyfriend in Vanity Fair interview - what is their age gap?

Billie Eilish has opened up about her relationship with boyfriend Jesse Rutherford, best known as the singer for the Neighbourhood, for the first time publicly since the pair made their relationship Instagram official in October.

Eilish and Rutherford’s relationship has proven controversial due to their age gap, as Eilish is 20 and Rutherford 31.

This is what you need to know about what was said.

What did Billie Eilish say about Jesse Rutherford?

In her sixth instalment of her “Same Interview” series with Vanity Fair, in which she answers the same questions in the annual interview. Eilish has been answering these questions for Vanity Fair since 2017.

The singer spoke about her relationship with the Neighbourhood singer Jesse Rutherford for the first time in the newest addition to the series.

When asked if she has a boyfriend, Eilish said: “Yeah, I do. And, it’s really cool, and I’m really excited and I’m really happy about it.”

She continued: “I managed to get my way to a point in my life where I was not only known by a person that I thought was the hottest f**king f**ker alive, but pulled his ass. Are you kidding me? Can we just, round of applause for me?”

When the crew behind the camera began clapping, Eilish added: “Thank you, Jesse Rutherford everyone. I pulled his ass. All me. I did that s**t. I locked that motherf**ker down.”

Later in the interview, Eilish said that she was “really inspired” by Rutherford, and that he in turn was inspired by her, which she said was “really cool”.

Earlier this month, Eilish’s older brother and musical collaborator Finneas also briefly spoke about her relationship with Rutherford in an interview with E!News at the GQ Men of the Year event.

He said: “Listen, as long as she’s happy, I’m happy.”

How long have they been dating?

Eilish and Rutherford were first linked romantically when they were spotted on a date in Los Angeles on 13 October and, in photos obtained by TMZ, the two were seen kissing on the street on 19 October.

The pair made their relationship Instagram official on Halloween, with a coordinated couples costume that poked fun at their age gap, with Eilish dressed as a baby and Rutherford as an old man.

Their outfits weren’t entirely well received by the public, with many taking to social media to share their thoughts.

One person wrote: “Billie Eilish dating a man 6 years older than her older brother is gross in itself but the fact that they dressed up as a baby and an old man last night is just the icing on the cake [for real].”

Another tweeted: “In 10 years, when Billie Eilish is 30, she’ll look back on this age gap relationship and her Halloween costume and cringe super hard. Because dating a 20 year old when you’re 30+ IS WEIRD.”

“Billie Eilish and Jesse Rutherford think they are edgy with their Halloween costumes, but it’s so embarrassing.. I know she’s gonna regret it in a few years,” another wrote.

They then made their red carpet debut at the LACMA Art+Film Gala in LA wearing matching Gucci outfits in November.

More specific details about their relationship are unknown, with Eilish telling Roman Kemp on Capital Breakfast in September 2020 that she wants to keep her relationships private.

She said: “I definitely want to keep [relationships] private. I’ve had relationships and kept them private, and even the ones that I’ve had, with the tiny amount that I’ve let the world see, I regret.

“I think about the people that have made their relationships OD public, and then they break up, and it’s like, ‘What if it goes bad?’ Then everyone has this whole opinion on your relationship that they have no idea about. It’s not something I’m interested in.”