Justin Long has confirmed his romance with Kate Bosworth

Appearing on the 'Dear Chelsea' podcast, host Chelsea Handler congratulated her guest on being "newly in love".

Justin replied: "Yes, and she loves you. She is a really big fan of yours, personally."

The 47-year-old comic replied: "I really like her as well. Am I allowed to say her name? Is that OK?."

When the former 'New Girl' star confirmed it was fine, Chelsea named his partner as Kate.

Justin admitted being in love is "such a wonderful feeling" but he is keen to "protect" his romance with the 39-year-old star.

He said: "There's something about it, for me, that I feel like I need to protect and keep sacred because it feels sacred.

"I've never had anything like this before; I've never experienced this," Long said. "So it's something I want to protect and keep, you know?"

The 'Dodgeball' star's admission he is dating Kate comes a week after he teased he had found The One.

He said: "I had gotten to a place where I was comfortable with myself. I didn't know it at the time, but I was ready for the one.

"And the one, I met. I found.

"I want to [talk about it], but I also want to be protective. I want to scream it from the rooftops, but I also want to be protective. It's sacred."

The 'Accepted' star admitted in December he had a girlfriend and told how she liked pineapple on her pizza when discussing toppings on his podcast.

Justin and Kate filmed an unnamed movie in Arkansas last year, and when filming wrapped, actress - who announced last August she had split from husband Michael Polish after seven years of marriage - paid a gushing tribute to her "spectacular" co-star.

Sharing a series of images, she wrote on Instagram in May 2021: "Holy moly @justinlong you are a truly spectacular / fun / funny / kind / rare / thoughtful / totally. fckn. rad human being. [sunflower emoji].

"THANK YOU for lifting us up ... you kept it light full of laughter daily, even through the toughest moments. You gnome how much I love ya [yellow heart emoji] (sorry had to ;) (sic)"

Justin jokingly commented: "That's ALL you wrote about me??? Well ... I admire your restraint. (sic)"

But he then paid tribute to Kate as a "rare gem".

He added: "I joke because this is embarrassing and too much ... I'm going to say even nicer things about you publicly because people should know what a rare gem you are - all the things you said about me but a little bit (or a lot) more. It was a true joy to be in your glow.(sic)"