Actors can face a lot of pressure on set, especially when they’re forced to appear next to somebody they don’t want to work with. Even worse, actors sometimes have to kiss people during filming that they really, really don’t want to kiss. While some of these celebrities are people others dream of kissing, their co-workers sometimes just don’t feel it.
Liam Hemsworth in The Hunger Games
During the filming of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, Liam Hemsworth was uncomfortable about the idea of kissing Jennifer Lawrence, who he was good friends with. It didn’t help that Lawrence enjoyed teasing him by ingesting garlic or tuna prior to filming kissing scenes. She would tell him before they kissed what she’d eaten.
Luckily, the pair were able to pull it together and get their kissing scenes on camera. Either way, you can’t blame the guy for not wanting to taste tuna or garlic during a passionate kiss. Anybody would lose focus!
Kirsten Dunst in Interview With a Vampire
When Kirsten Dunst was just 11 years old, she found herself in the movie Interview with a Vampire based off the popular Anne Rice novel. In the movie, Dunst had to kiss Brad Pitt. Most people, especially in the 90s, would’ve done just about anything to lock lips with Hollywood’s leading man, but Dunst didn’t want to.
Twenty years after the movie, she recalled the kiss and said she thought it was disgusting at the time. To be fair, what little girl dreams of being obligated to kiss a man decades older than herself?
Toby Maguire in Spiderman
Long after Kirsten Dunst didn’t want to kiss Brad Pitt on screen, Toby Maguire didn’t want to kiss her in the film Spiderman. It was nothing personal towards Dunst, however. Maguire didn’t want to do the famous upside down kiss for logistical reasons.
Even though the end shot looked really good, Maguire later talked about how uncomfortable it was. First, he was upside down. Second, it was raining, and water was going up his nose, causing him to gasp for breath out the side of his mouth.
Thandie Newton in Mission Impossible 2
Thandie Newton and Tom Cruise were co-stars in Mission Impossible 2. Although the movie would go on to be a favorite among action lovers, Newton had no interest in kissing Cruise on set.
She would go on to say that he was an “icky” and “wet” kisser. The weather was apparently really humid and hot while shooting, and that likely didn’t help the whole kissing situation, either. Regardless, the pair did what they had to do.
Josh Hutcherson in The Hunger Games
It turned out that Liam Hemsworth wasn’t the only one during the filming of Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 that didn’t want to kiss the star of the franchise. Josh Hutcherson was slated for his first big on-screen kiss, and he wasn’t happy about his partner being Lawrence.
In interviews, he said she was an “abrasive” kisser. Both he and Lawrence agreed that kissing each other was “sloppy.” Apparently even celebrities aren’t always perfect kissers! Fortunately, the movie still turned out well.
Reese Witherspoon in Water For Elephants
Reese Witherspoon shocked teenage girls everywhere when it came out that she didn’t want to kiss co-star Robert Pattinson in the movie Water for Elephants. The reason didn’t have anything to do with Pattinson himself, though.
Both Witherspoon and Pattinson had a pretty nasty cold during filming. You can’t blame her for not wanting to be up close and personal with snot and sickness. They did manage to pull it off, though, and the film was met with lots of praise from critics, so it worked out for everybody.
Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Brad Pitt has done countless love scenes involving a lot more than kissing, so he surprised director David Fincher when he flat-out refused to kiss co-star Cate Blanchett. His refusal was said to be out of respect for his then-wife Angelina Jolie. There was speculation that the couple was having issues at home during filming.
After some convincing, Pitt did go ahead with the scene. He and Angelina Jolie are no longer together, so he’s probably glad he decided to go ahead with the kiss in the end.
James McAvoy in Wanted
James McAvoy was a rising star when he started filming the movie Wanted. It shocked many people when it came out that he didn’t want to kiss his gorgeous co-star Angelina Jolie. His reason? It was really awkward.
The two had just met on the day of the kissing scene, meaning they hadn’t had any other previous interactions. It’s easy to see how that could be a bit strange. Either way, the two kissed, and the movie turned out great. It was a win-win.
Miles Teller in The Spectacular Now
This is an odd one. During the filming of The Spectacular Now, Miles Teller didn’t want to kiss Shailene Woodley because she was literally taking dirt supplements at the time of filming.
Yes, you read that right! Woodley was in a stage where she was trying to get back to nature and eat like indigenous people used to. The supplements she took were basically dirt, and according to Teller, she just shoved it in her mouth, and it tasted and smelled terrible! The pair pulled it off in the end, though.
Vanessa Hudgens in Spring Breakers
Spring Breakers was a pretty weird movie, albeit entertainingly so. On set, Vanessa Hudgens had a scene with James Franco, and let’s just say it was a bit more than kissing. The former Disney star was really uncomfortable, especially because nudity was involved.
The scene went as planned, but Hudgens said she was a lot more comfortable kissing her other co-star, Ashley Benson. She went on to do more kissing scenes in other films, so it seems she’s more comfortable now.
Emma Watson in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2
Emma Watson wanted to get the kissing scene between her and Rubert Grint over with as soon as humanly possible. Her approach was to jump on him, quickly do the kiss, and hopefully, that would be that.
The two stars were such good friends that they almost felt like siblings, and they both stated that the kiss was weird for each of them. In the end, however, they pulled it off, and the famed couple of the book managed to (awkwardly) make it on-screen.
Dwayne Johnson in Get Smart
Kisses always have the potential to be awkward, but the one between The Rock and Steve Carell in Get Smart was particularly doomed. Neither actor was jazzed about the kissing scene, but The Rock had some pretty funny things to say after the movie wrapped.
He told interviewers that kissing Steve Carell was like kissing kitty litter and described the entire experience as highly uncomfortable. Nonetheless, despite their misgivings, they went through with it, and many people loved the comedy film.
Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook
Wow, Jennifer Lawrence and kissing scenes certainly don’t seem to mix! This time, while on the set of Silver Linings Playbook, Lawrence didn’t want to kiss Bradley Cooper. Many found this hard to believe because, well, it’s Bradley Cooper!
Apparently, Lawrence didn’t care for the way Cooper kissed, which is sort of ironic giving that she usually makes kissing scenes uncomfortable for her co-stars. After the second take, she told him that he was a wet kisser. Pretty harsh! Either way, the scenes turned out well.
Carey Mulligan in Public Enemies
Sometimes, when a new actor has to kiss a well-known actor, nerves alone can cause some issues. That’s what happened when Carey Mulligan and Johnny Depp were filming Public Enemies.
Mulligan claims she was so starstruck, her kiss with Depp turned out incredibly awkwardly. They ran the scene 16 times, but in the end, it was so awkward that it was cut from the entire film. In the end, the movie still ended up being a hit so it worked out for everyone.
Hugh Jackman in Australia
While the film Australia turned out to be a total flop, what happened on the set of the movie is still worth noting. Hugh Jackman didn’t want to kiss beauty Nicole Kidman. He wasn’t comfortable faking intimacy with somebody while a bunch of people were watching, which in his defense is quite relatable.
Jackman described the scene as “a tough day at the office.” On one hand, that must make the movie’s poor reception at the box office sting all the more, but on the other, it does show Jackman’s dedication to acting.
Julia Roberts in I Love Trouble
While filming I Love Trouble, Julia Roberts didn’t want to kiss Nick Nolte because she found him “disgusting.” At the same time, Nolte described Roberts as “not a nice person.”
Ouch, talk about some bad blood. Apparently it got so bad that both actors began to resist when it became time to film together. Their dislike for each other was so great that many critics mentioned the actors’ lack of chemistry together as one of its major flaws.
Helena Bonham Carter in The Mighty Aphrodite
There’s always been a lot of controversy surrounding Woody Allen, so it isn’t surprising that Helena Bonham Carter didn’t want to kiss him while filming The Mighty Aphrodite. She stated that she hated his personality and compared kissing him to kissing the Berlin Wall. Harsh!
Apparently, he told her prior to their kissing scene that there would be no “exchange of liquids.” That’s a pretty strange request when kissing somebody! They pulled it off, though — barely.
Lindsay Lohan in Scary Movie 5
On the set of Scary Movie 5, Lindsay Lohan refused to kiss Charlie Sheen and she really stuck to her guns. Apparently, the party girl had issues with Sheen’s own partying past and feared kissing him so much so that a body double was actually brought in for the final cut.
There were supposed to be more kissing scenes between the two, but they were later cut — only the scenes with Lohan’s body double made it. Sheen didn’t seem to mind being turned down, at least.
Virginie Ledoyen in The Beach
It’s strange to think that somebody wouldn’t want to kiss Leonardo DiCaprio, but that’s what happened on the set of The Beach. Virginie Ledoyan had some strange words after the filming of the movie was over. She stated that she “didn’t want him as a lover.”
Apparently Ledoyan didn’t feel any passion during their makeout scenes, while DiCaprio displayed what Ledoyan described as a lack of sensitivity that was a major turn-off. She doesn’t dislike him as a person, but as a lover — well, she doesn’t want him.
Kristen Stewart in Twilight
While it’s apparent that Kristen Stewart had no problems kissing Robert Pattinson on- and off-screen, she didn’t feel the same way when it came to Taylor Lautner. I mean, we can’t really blame her. Her boyfriend was literally on set.
In interviews, Stewart said she thought those scenes went against everything her character stood for. The two did say that filming the kissing scenes together felt weird, because aside from them, they had a lot of fun working together.
Thandie Newton in RocknRolla
During the filming of RocknRolla, Thandie Newton once again found herself in a situation where she had no desire to film a kissing scene. This time, it was with Gerard Butler, and once again, it was because her co-star had a cold. At least she didn’t also have one this time.
A lot of improvisation occurred on set to get the shots needed to complete the movie. Maybe the repeat situation was just a coincidence, maybe Newton has bad luck with colds, or maybe she just doesn’t like kissing but doesn’t want to say so. Whatever the case, the movie ended up working out in the end, sickness or not.
Alyson Hannigan in How I Met Your Mother
Smoking can be a real turn off to potential tonsil hockey partners, and that was exactly the reason why Alyson Hannigan didn’t want to kiss Jason Segal during the filming of the sitcom How I Met Your Mother.
Segal had tried to quit and was successful for a time, but he eventually started smoking again. Since the series ran so many seasons, it probably wasn’t the most ideal situation for Hannigan, who had to kiss him often while filming.
Denzel Washington in The Pelican Brief
Julia Roberts was reportedly offended when co-star Denzel Washington didn’t want to kiss her during the filming of The Pelican Brief. At the time, Washington said it had nothing to do with Roberts herself, but rather Hollywood’s twisted ideals of beauty at the time.
Basically, he didn’t want to be seen kissing a white woman on camera when similar roles for black women were so rare. All the kissing scenes were cut from the movie, and it’s not surprising. An actor like Denzel Washington probably has a lot of sway on set!
Jewel in The Lyon’s Den
Rob Lowe has long had countless female fans, but on the set of the show The Lyon’s Den, singer Jewel didn’t want to kiss him. She objected so much that she wanted the entire scene cut before filming. Eventually, however, it did happen.
Jewel said that she didn’t know where Lowe’s mouth had been. That’s one harsh burn! It was even a joke on Comedy’s Central’s Roast of Rob Lowe. Hopefully, Lowe didn’t take it too personally.
Luke Grimes on True Blood
If you watched HBO’s hit show True Blood, you may have noticed that Luke Grimes left after only being in one season. That’s because he refused to do a same-sex kissing scene with Nelsan Ellis.
Apparently, while Grimes claimed he dropped out because of conflicting movie schedules, it became clear later that that wasn’t the issue. Whether he regrets dropping out or not, we’ll never know.
Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder in The Vampire Diaries
Things can get complicated when co-stars get together off screen and then have a break up while the show is still going strong. That’s what happened with Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder while shooting the hit series The Vampire Diaries.
The two broke up but remained friends. After that, however, they didn’t really want to do kissing scenes together. Many were cut from the series, but they did share a final kiss in the last episode. You have to hand it to the broken-up couple to pull it together for one last scene!
Jennifer Lawrence in Passengers
Yet again, Jennifer Lawrence was involved in issues with kissing scenes during filming. On the set of Passengers, Lawrence didn’t want to kiss Chris Pratt, who was a married man. She told multiple sources that she had to get completely wasted to deal with the guilt of kissing a man who was married.
To be fair, Lawrence was friends with the couple, and that would be weird for anybody. She also called her mom before shooting because she needed “somebody to tell her it was okay.”
Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet in Revolutionary Road
It may sound odd that this pair decided not to kiss after having awesome chemistry in Titanic, but there was a good reason they didn’t do it again during the filming of Revolutionary Road.
First, the director of the film was Sam Mendes, who was actually married to Winslet at the time. Second, the two actors didn’t want to be known for working in romantic films that mirrored Titanic in any way. Fans will likely never see the pair in on-screen love again.
Sienna Miller in Camille
In the indie film Camille, Sienna Miller and James Franco played newlyweds, but Miller didn’t want to lock lips with Franco. However, it had nothing to do with him at all. At the time, Miller was having dental issues.
She ended up needing to call an emergency dentist during filming. Critics later criticized the lack of intimacy in what was otherwise a romantic film, but given the circumstances, the decision makes sense.
Will Smith in Six Degrees of Separation
Before Will Smith became a household name, he was working on an independent film called Six Degrees of Separation. His character was a con-artist who also happened to be gay. In the script, there was a passionate kissing scene between Smith’s character and another man. However, Smith refused to shoot the scene.
The director unhappily agreed to shoot a fake kissing scene with the camera methodically placed behind Smith. Years later, Smith admitted that his choice was immature.
