Emma Watson admitted the long-awaited kiss between Hermione and Ron in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows felt pretty awkward to film. She was so eager to get the moment over with that she basically rushed into it, joking that she “pounced” on Rupert Grint during the scene. The two had grown up together on set, which made the whole thing feel more strange than romantic. | © Warner Bros. Pictures
Kirsten Dunst shared the famous upside-down kiss with Tobey Maguire in Spider-Man, but filming it wasn’t nearly as romantic as it looked. Maguire was hanging upside down in the rain for the scene, with water running into his nose and barely any room to breathe under the mask. The moment became iconic on screen, even though the experience was cold, awkward, and pretty uncomfortable for both of them. | © Walt Disney Pictures
Liam Hemsworth once joked that kissing Jennifer Lawrence in The Hunger Games was rarely a pleasant experience. The two are close friends, but Lawrence liked to prank him before their scenes by eating garlic or tuna and proudly announcing it. Hemsworth said those moments made every kiss feel a lot less romantic than it looked on screen. | © Lionsgate Films
Gwyneth Paltrow admitted that kissing Robert Downey Jr. in the Iron Man and Avengers films never felt romantic to her. The two actors are such close friends that the moment came off more like kissing a sibling than a co-star. Paltrow even joked that the scene made her think, “This is literally like kissing my brother.” | © Walt Disney Pictures
Kate Hudson once joked that kissing Matthew McConaughey on screen rarely goes smoothly. During one story she shared about filming Fool’s Gold, the scene had them kissing in the ocean after a chaotic plane crash sequence. Wind, water, and even a runny nose turned the moment into a messy situation that Hudson still laughs about. | © Paramount Pictures
Sandra Bullock once hinted that kissing Ben Affleck in Forces of Nature wasn’t the most pleasant experience. The issue reportedly came down to his breath, which she joked about after filming their scenes together. Bullock didn’t dwell on it much, but the story stuck around as one of those awkward behind-the-scenes moments. | © DreamWorks Pictures
Elizabeth Hurley once revealed that her worst on-screen kiss involved a German co-star she simply couldn’t stand. The two actors didn’t get along at all, which made filming their romantic scenes feel especially uncomfortable. Fans later connected the story to Jürgen Prochnow, her co-star in the 1990 film Der Skipper. | © Late Night with Seth Meyers / YouTube
James Franco once recalled that a kissing scene with Sienna Miller in Camille didn’t exactly turn into a romantic moment. Miller was dealing with a painful toothache at the time, which made the whole situation pretty uncomfortable. Franco later said the kiss was quick and careful, since she was clearly more focused on her aching molar than the scene itself. | © Pyramide Distribution
Jennifer Lopez once hinted that not every on-screen kiss has been a great experience. While playing a ranking game on The Wendy Williams Show, she was asked to order several co-stars from best to worst kisser, including Matthew McConaughey and George Clooney. Clooney ended up last on her list, which quietly revealed which kiss she liked the least. | © Universal Studios
Kristen Stewart admitted that kissing Taylor Lautner in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse felt surprisingly difficult to film. Bella’s story was so focused on Edward that the moment with Jacob felt strange and out of place for her as an actress. Stewart later said the whole scene made her incredibly nervous, which didn’t make the kiss any easier to pull off. | © Summit Entertainment
Eva Mendes once revealed she got so nervous about kissing Will Smith in Hitch that she sabotaged the moment herself. Right before the scene, she ate a tuna sandwich loaded with onions and even Doritos, basically creating what she jokingly called the worst breath possible. Smith still played it cool about the kiss afterward, which Mendes later laughed about during an interview. | © Sony Pictures Releasing
Megan Fox has said the kissing scene with Amanda Seyfried in Jennifer’s Body wasn’t exactly comfortable for either of them. Both actresses felt uneasy about filming it, even though it ended up becoming one of the movie’s most talked-about moments. Fox later admitted Seyfried was especially horrified about having to do it, while she herself felt only slightly less awkward about the whole thing. | © 20th Century Studios
Millie Bobby Brown didn’t exactly enjoy filming her first kiss with Finn Wolfhard on Stranger Things. The moment already felt awkward for two teenagers, and it didn’t help that her dad and other family members were watching the scene being filmed. Brown later joked that neither of them really knew what to do afterward, which only made the whole situation feel even more uncomfortable. | © Netflix
Jennifer Lawrence admitted filming an intimate scene in Passengers left her feeling surprisingly uneasy. Chris Pratt, her co-star in the film, was married at the time, and the situation made her so nervous that she tried to calm down by getting drunk before the shoot. The plan didn’t help much, though, she later said the guilt hit her even harder afterwards, turning the whole experience into one she’d rather forget. | © Sony Pictures Releasing
Zac Efron once admitted his very first on-screen kiss turned into an awkward disaster while filming Summerland with Kay Panabaker. He had eaten fish for lunch right before the scene, leaned in nervously, closed his eyes… and suddenly heard her reacting to the smell instead of returning the kiss. Efron later joked that the moment haunted him enough that he now carries a toothbrush everywhere just in case. | © Paramount Pictures
Not every on-screen kiss turns into a magical movie moment. Actors sometimes deal with nerves, awkward timing, strange filming conditions, or even terrible breath while the cameras roll. These celebrities later shared the stories behind the kisses that went completely wrong.
