"There's actual exes on set doing their job well" - Fans weigh in on Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey's stunt double drama

Actors Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey appeared together in the Netflix teen drama series Outer Banks in the roles of JJ Maybank and Kiara “Kie” Carrera respectively.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for ‘Outer Banks.’

In the season 4 finale, the co-stars were featured in a cuddling scene on top of a cliff, however, none of their faces were visible due to the sudden shift in camera angle. Amid this, fans of the show have theorized that Pankow and Bailey used stunt doubles to film the scene.

Their speculation also follows the rumor that Rudy and Madison allegedly got involved in a feud after a 2023 cast dinner with their respective real-life girlfriends. Reportedly, fans shipping the characters of Kiara and JJ was the reason behind the dispute.

For the unversed, Merriam-Webster defines “shipping” as the act of creating a romantic pairing between two characters who are otherwise not romantically linked.

Regardless, the internet is now weighing in on the rumored stunt double drama involving the two actors. For instance, X user @itsbritneyloh commented on @bellaisa20012’s post showing the alleged stunt double scene with the caption, “NO WAY THEY HAD A JJ STUNT DOUBLE WHEN KIE WAS LAYING ON HIM??????”

Britney Loh pointed out that actors Chase Stokes (who plays the lead John B. Routledge) and Madelyn Cline (who plays his love interest Sarah Cameron) dated for a year in real life and then split in November 2021.

“Embarrassing, considering there’s actual exes on set still doing their job well,” the user wrote.

Many joined the conversation and shared similar reactions to Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey reportedly using stunt doubles for their cozy scene.

“Imagine being Chase and Madelyn, the actual long-term exes who are acting out being married and having a baby together and seeing your friends use stunt doubles to act out their scenes like I'd be laughing in their faces and telling them to grow the f*ck up or change careers,” a fan wrote.

“Bring back professional actors ‘cause what is this???” another fan wrote.

“This made me appreciate Chase and Madelyn more. Even if they're literal exes, they still manage to keep their feelings neutral and is STILL feeding us with such amazing intimacy and tension. Their professionalism is astounding, one can learn a thing or two about that,” wrote another.

Others continued to share their insights.

“Blaming Rudy & Madison refusing to film scenes together on fans shipping them is so DUMB. They’re not the first actors to be shipped together. They’re just unprofessional and immature bcuz wtf do mean they need their stunt doubles to film their scenes together??? LOL EW,” a netizen wrote.

“Is this ‘Outer Banks’?? I swear the only time I hear about this show, it's always about them not wanting to work with each other,” another netizen wrote.

“THEY ARE GROWN ADULTS, THEY CAN'T EVEN DO THEIR JOB,” an individual wrote.

“I know, right? They really had a stunt double for that scene! Makes you wonder what was going on behind the scenes,” wrote another.

Notably, Rudy Pankow’s character JJ Maybank was also tragically killed off during the season 4 finale. Fan theory suggests it was because of his alleged behind-the-camera feud with Madison Bailey.

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Exploring the alleged beef between Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey

Outer Banks is an action-adventure and mystery-based teen drama which has been running on Netflix since 2020. It revolves around the lives of John B. Routledge, Sarah Cameron, Kiara Carrera, JJ Maybank, Pope Heyward (played by Jonathan Daviss), and Cleo (played by Carlacia Grant) as they go on treasure hunts.

At the end of episode 10 of season 4, Rudy Pankow’s character JJ died in the arms of Madison Bailey’s Kiara. JJ succumbed to stab injuries after being attacked with a knife by his own father Chandler Groff (played by J. Anthony Crane) in Morocco who tried to rob him and Kiara of their newly found treasure.

While a section of the show’s fanbase believes that the demise “won’t stick,” others have theorized that Rudy Pankow’s character got killed off because of his alleged rift with his co-star, Madison Bailey.

In June 2023, fans of Outer Banks took to TikTok and speculated that the duo were allegedly feuding after a cast dinner in Charleston, South Carolina, where they were shooting at the time. Reportedly, Rudy Pankow’s girlfriend Elaine Siemek, who's an assistant on the show, was also present.

In the aftermath of the dinner, Madison Bailey and her basketball star girlfriend Mariah Linney (who was not in attendance) unfollowed Siemek on social media. Elaine too unfollowed them back. Meanwhile, Rudy Pankow unfollowed Linney. However, the co-stars continued to follow each other. So far, neither of them has addressed the alleged feud in public nor has they commented on the stunt double theory.

The show’s co-creator Shannon Burke told Cosmopolitan last month how killing off JJ has been in the works since the beginning of the show. However, they were unsure how to “play that card” until season 4.

Meanwhile, Rudy Pankow addressed JJ's death scene during a November 5 'Inside Look' session on Netflix.

“When I first found out that JJ was going to risk it all and not make it I understood it because when I read the character breakdown for the audition, it said, loyal to a fault. And I think, as the stakes got higher and higher, his whole thing is, he takes the risk and puts his friends before himself.”

Rudy Pankow went on to add about his character:

“He has to judge every moment of his life if it is worth it, and I think he is constantly, yeah, it is. Life is really precious and fragile and his death really does set up the future of OBX with the question of what is worth it and when someone that close to you is gone, how do you navigate that.”

Madison Bailey also weighed in and said JJ's character embodied "the spirit of never giving up" and "rebelling against what is expected of you to save what really matters."

Rudy Pankow also told Backstage in August how he was “thankful” for the opportunity of playing JJ but was at peace knowing it wasn’t meant to “last forever.”

Outer Bank is set to return for its fifth and final season in 2025, as confirmed by Netflix.