Hathaway Wading Back Into the Dating Pool With Actor?

If we were Anne Hathaway, background checks would be mandatory for all potential beaus to avoid a repeat of what happened with conman ex Raffaello Follieri, who was recently sentenced to four-and-a-half years in the pokey for wire fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. So, here's hoping the rumored new guy in the actress's life has been thoroughly vetted.

Life & Style says she's smitten with actor Adam Shulman, whose biggest role to date has been, well, being linked to the doe-eyed star (his IMDb credits include a stint on the series "American Dreams" and the coveted part of Enos in the award-winning TV movie "The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning").

The pair was snapped stepping out together last week in New Orleans, where Hathaway, 25, attended a screening of her buzz-heavy drama "Rachel Getting Married" with Shulman, 27, in tow.

"We met through mutual friends," Adam is quoted as indiscreetly -- and unpromisingly -- telling the tabloid. "I came to support Anne. We've never been to New Orleans before -- it's our first time."

But was Shulman already in a relationship when he and Hathaway first crossed paths?

"He was actually seeing someone else," the actress is said to have told pals over a post-premiere dinner at a New Orleans restaurant, during which she was supposedly seen "resting her hand on Adam's leg" and eating off his plate. "I thought I was going to have to step back."

If we were Anne Hathaway, background checks would be mandatory for all potential beaus to avoid a repeat of what happened with conman ex Raffaello Follieri, who was recently sentenced to four-and-a-half years in the pokey for wire fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. So, here's hoping the rumored new guy in the actress's life has been thoroughly vetted. Life & Style says she's smitten with actor Adam Shulman, whose biggest role to date has been, well, being linked to the doe-eyed star (his IMDb credits include a stint on the series "American Dreams" and the coveted part of Enos in the award-winning TV movie "The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning"). The pair was snapped stepping out together last week in New Orleans, where Hathaway, 25, attended a screening of her buzz-heavy drama "Rachel Getting Married" with Shulman, 27, in tow. "We met through mutual friends," Adam is quoted as indiscreetly -- and unpromisingly -- telling the tabloid. "I came to support Anne. We've never been to New Orleans before -- it's our first time." But was Shulman already in a relationship when he and Hathaway first crossed paths? "He was actually seeing someone else," the actress is said to have told pals over a post-premiere dinner at a New Orleans restaurant, during which she was supposedly seen "resting her hand on Adam's leg" and eating off his plate. "I thought I was going to have to step back." "Adam's everything Raffaello wasn't," pronounces a mole. "He's sensitive and kind to a fault. I think Anne may have found a kindred spirit." But Hathaway's rep is throwing cold water on the tabloid's contention that she's dipped her big toe back into the dating pool. "Nothing in the Life & Style piece is accurate," the spokesman pooh-poohs to E! News. Meanwhile, the owner of the eatery where the actress was purportedly spied getting personal with Shulman's leg and dinner plate says she was there with her "Rachel" director, Jonathan Demme: "She wasn't on a date -- it appeared to be more or less business." A few weeks back, Hathaway told People that she's "totally single right now," but teased that she did "meet a sexy guy the other day." "This guy I know in L.A. is kind of doing it for me right now," she shared. "When I think of sexy, I think of him. You know when sometimes you don't know someone very well -- you'll probably never see them again -- but you just meet them and you're like 'WOW, you really have it going on'?" On the subject of Follieri, "I don't wish to talk about my personal life," Hathaway acknowledges to the Los Angeles Times. "But I talked about it before there was anything newsworthy to talk about. I set the precedent. And now, out of respect for the machine, I have to honor it." The actress sidesteps specifics by comparing her situation to her character in "Rachel Getting Married," explaining, "I'm playing a character who's coming home and everybody knows her 'bidness.' And here I am promoting this movie and everyone knows my business. It's one of those moments where art imitates life." But she realizes the moment is fleeting. "I don't expect all this to last -- the good, the bad, the scrutiny," Anne tells the paper. "It's just a moment. I'm not going to hold on too tight in any respect."