Robert Irwin makes red carpet debut with famous girlfriend – and you might recognize her

It’s hard to believe that Robert Irwin is all grown up, after recently making his red carpet debut with his famous girlfriend by his side.

The 19-year-old Aussie conservationist and son of the late Steve Irwin rocked the Sydney premiere of Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning with his 18-year-old girlfriend, Rorie Buckley.

Robert and Rorie made quite the glamorous couple, with the amateur photographer sporting a smart all-black suit and his date posing in a long black asymmetrical dress with side cutouts.

Though, Rorie herself is no stranger to the limelight, and many may recognize her as the niece of late Australian actor Heath Ledger. Her mother was the 10 Things I Hate About You star’s sister.

While the recent movie premiere was the first public premiere the couple have attended, the cute duo were first papped in November last year cuddling on a beach in Queensland. According to New Idea, Robert and Rorie were spotted arm in arm as they enjoyed some burgers while watching the sunset on the water.

Rorie also joined Robert and his mother Terri at Australia Zoo’s crocodile show for his 19th birthday in December last year.

Most of us will remember that Robert’s father Steve was tragically killed in 2006 when a stingray barb pierced his heart. He had been on location in the Barrier Reef filming for an upcoming documentary and was hoping to get some B-roll footage for his daughter Bindi’s wildlife series when he was attacked by the sting ray.

Robert was almost three years old at the time of his father’s death and, as such, has had to grow up without his father. Though, the youngest Irwin child has apparently been able to bond with Rorie’s cousin Matilda Ledger over the loss, as she too lost her famous father aged two.

Australian outlet Woman’s Day explained that, while Matilda hasn’t spent much time Down Under, her mother Michelle Williams has made sure her daughter keeps in touch with her Australian family, including Rorie.

“It’s hard to imagine a pair of Aussie kids who share a more similar story than Matilda and Robert. It really is a twist of fate that they ended up sharing such a strong link through Rorie,” an insider revealed to the publication.

“Getting to know Matilda who’s in a similar boat not remembering her dad because she was so young, would be so cathartic for him,” they added.

The new focus on Robert’s love life comes after he admitted his older sister Bindi had been encouraging him to find a girlfriend so there was less media attention on her, especially following the birth of her daughter Grace Warrior with husband Chandler Powell in March 2021.

In fact, Robert told E! News in December: “It’s pretty funny because of course, my sister has gotten married and had a kid and there’s always a lot of rumors that go around. ‘Bindi’s having a second kid’ or ‘they’re having triplets,’” he said.

The teen continued: “There’s always so many crazy things that happen so Bindi always says, ‘Robert, it’s your turn now. You gotta find someone to take the heat off me!’”

As for Robert and Rorie, the pair are reportedly dating long-distance, as she is based in Western Australia and Robert lives on the East coast.