Manuel Garcia-Rulfo has lifted the lid on his low-key life away from the stoplight in a candid new interview.

The Lincoln Lawyer star gave rare insight into his background, his career, and his love life in an exclusive chat with HOLA!.

Manuel has been quietly dating Audrey McGraw since 2023, and the couple prefers to keep their relationship private.

But when quizzed about finding love, the 43-year-old couldn’t help but confess how “lucky” he feels.

Manuel is playing Pedro Paramo in the upcoming Netflix movie, and he was asked if he considers himself to be the opposite of his “spiteful” character. The outlet then added: “Would you consider yourself lucky in love?”

© Instagram
The couple have been quietly dating for over a year

The softly spoken actor confirmed: “Yes, I do. Thank God. Honestly, yes. From childhood, and in everything, yes. There’s a lot of love in my life, thank God.”

While he didn’t name Audrey specifically, if their rare social media posts together are anything to go by, they’re still madly in love.

Manuel plays Mickey Haller in The Lincoln Lawyer

Audrey — who is the daughter of country music duo, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw — appears to share Manuel’s desire to shield their romance from the glare of Hollywood.

While she’s carving out a career as a musician, she too prefers to to keep her personal life on the down-low.

They prefer life out of the spotlight

Mexican-born Manuel, was asked about fame and how he deals with it.

“I head to the ranch,” he said about his family home. “No, honestly, it doesn’t keep me up at night. I know it’s a profession where there’s a lot of… not lies, but it’s a world that’s very… You know what? 

© @audreymcgraw Instagram
Audrey shares a rare photo embracing boyfriend Manuel

“I don’t take it too seriously. I do my job, and whether people like it or not is up to them. Some people say, ‘How cool,’ and yes, it’s nice to be recognized, for people to come up and say, ‘I saw your work today, it was great.’ But it’s not a big deal.”

Manuel also opened up about attention, confessing he has always found it very hard to deal with. So much so, he doesn’t even like celebrating his birthday.

 “I’ve never celebrated it,” Manuel quipped. “Since I was very young, never. Attention is hard for me. I once broke up with a girlfriend because she threw me a surprise party, and it caused me a lot of anxiety.

© Photo: Netflix
Manuel grew up in a supportive family

“It really stressed me out. I didn’t get mad, but I was like, ‘Why would you do that to me?’

“Ever since I was a kid, I’ve never liked it. Sometimes I’ll go out for dinner with my five friends or family, something like that. But as for celebrating me, I don’t know. I should start, maybe throw a big party.”

He’s incredibly close to his big family and although they all thought he would follow in the footsteps of his grandfather and dad and become a dentist, they supported him in his choice to go into film.

“They know it’s a tough profession,” he said of their feelings about him going into the arts. “And almost no one makes a living from it. So, they worried, but in the end, they supported me.”