Inside Nina Dobrev’s Busy Life Since Ending Engagement to Shaun White

Nina Dobrev Debuts Romance With Model Dougie Joseph After Shaun White Breakup

Nina Dobrev was ready to take a big bite out of life after her engagement to Shaun White ended last summer.

It never hurts to have access to a yacht, but it can be especially useful in case of a warm-weather breakup, and a week after it became public knowledge that they had split up, the Vampire Diaries alum took to the Italian coast in September.

The group onboard included Zac Efron, Miles Teller and Keleigh Sperry, and Chace Crawford and his girlfriend Kelsey Merritt. And in the photos Sperry shared, it certainly didn’t look as if Dobrev—who visited family in Canada before embarking on that idyllic getaway—was faking her enjoyment.

“I’m excited for the future,” Dobrev told TMZ Oct. 1 at Los Angeles International Airport in between trips, “and the only thing that’s guaranteed is change.” She also deftly shut down the inevitable rumor that she and Efron—the only apparent free agents on their vacay—were dating.

Now almost a year on, however (and a month after White and model Angela Garten sparked romance rumors), Dobrev is looking happy next to Bodi Skin Co. founder Douglas Joseph, the pair appearing very much in sync strolling through New York on July 11.

Because if it was a big shock to the world when Dobrev and White went their separate ways after five years together, imagine what it was like for them. 

The three-time Olympic gold medalist snowboarder had proposed in October 2024 with a five-carat Lorraine Schwartz diamond and the actress had just posted a photo of her and White in bed (clothed, while she sported a sheet mask) on Sept. 5, six days before the split news broke.

Dobrev hitting the red carpet at the Toronto International Film Festival Sept. 7 without her engagement ring didn’t cause a stir in the moment, but hindsight-is-20/20 analysis concluded that her bare finger was a case of the 37-year-old intentionally leaving jewelry behind for a reason.

They had bought a house in the Hollywood Hills together in 2023 and were still been in the process of remodeling the $4.3 million estate last summer. That home was reportedly listed for rent in September for $35,000 a month. And after Dobrev hotfooted it to sunnier climes post-split, then stopped in Paris en route to the South of France for a friend’s wedding, another change of scene was in order for the Love Hard star, 

The longtime L.A. resident revealed in November that she would be staying in New York for awhile, flashing a Big Apple keychain on Instagram Stories, captioned the photo, “She’s a New Yorker.” 

Though, really, Dobrev was living out of a suitcase, attending the British Fashion Council Awards in London in December, after which she headed to Saudi Arabia for the Red Sea International Film Festival. In Jeddah she mingled with the likes of Jessica Alba, Dakota Johnson and Rita Ora at the Dec. 5 Women in Cinema gala.

She then spent Christmas with family, sharing pics of cozy indoor tableaus and playtime in the snow.

But another yacht beckoned for New Year’s and she jetted to St. Barts to bid farewell to 2025. Miles and Keleigh were on hand for the fireworks, as were Chord Overstreet, Alix Earle, and Dobrev’s long-ago ex Glen Powell with his since-confirmed girlfriend Michelle Randolph. 

“Some old friends, some new friends… now all best friends,” Dobrev captioned a Jan. 3 carousel of pics. “Haven’t laughed, been in awe or smiled this much in my life. The perfect way to ring in the new year. Off to a GREAT start. Feeling beyond lucky, and grateful.”

Then it was back to L.A. for a pre-Golden Globes event Jan. 8, and then friends showed up the next day for a “Forever 30” party for Dobrev’s 37th birthday, complete with cake and a tiara.

A few days later she was spotted out in L.A. with a KISS-makeup-sporting mystery man, which turned out to be part of the vibe for an e.l.f. Cosmetics x Liquid Death photo shoot for their new Lip Embalm collab. 

Her 2026 has so far included jaunts to Italy, the Hamptons and Sicily for the Taormina Film Festival in June, plus you better believe she took advantage of the NBA Finals being in her own backyard.

But wherever Dobrev ultimately lands—New York seems to have her heart for now, as the March Instagram carousel featuring scenes from her unpacking process would indicate—her nearest and dearest are welcome to follow. 

“I used to say that I lived most of my life on planes, because I’m constantly traveling for work and pleasure,” she told Architectural Digest in 2021. “But the pandemic was the first time that I was in my home for an extended period of time.”

It was then that she decided to redecorate her longtime West Hollywood home and make it more hospitable for guests of all ages and species, noting, “I want to have kids in my home, and I have dogs, and I have friends over.”

And while Dobrev is still making the most of her luggage, “I love to host and to cook—schedule permitting,” she told Food 52 in December. “Honestly, any excuse for an occasion to have people over.”

When life gets busy, “it’s really therapeutic to be at home, shut everything off, put on a playlist, pick a random recipe, and destroy my kitchen in the process.”

While Dobrev is busy making new memories, check out her post-split journey in photos: