Romantic movies and TV shows wouldn't be any different without the kiss scene. The characters tease and flirt with each other, creating tension until they can't hold it anymore and eventually locked lips. So romantic! Such scenes leave the audience ecstatic, inspiring fantasies and wishing for a love story all their own.
However, you may be surprised to learn that some of your favorite on-screen couples didn't actually feel the sparks coming out of the camera. In fact, some of the best-known kiss scenes actually caused a lot of drama behind the scenes. What takes place when two ex-couples have to kiss on camera? Or when two actors who hate each other have a love scene?
We enjoy some Hollywood romance, but we prefer the drama that occurs off-screen. So, here are some stars whose
romantic on-screen kisses caused some off-screen problems.
Source: Passengers via Sony Pictures Releasing
When filming "Passengers", Jennifer Lawrence was hesitant to kiss Chris Pratt, her co-star. Off-screen, she was close with the actor, but she was also close with Pratt's wife, Anna Faris. She said that kissing a married man made her feel bad. She even talked to her mother about what to do in the scene before she and Pratt were set to film their kissing scene. Lawrence ultimately gave in to the situation after drinking of a couple of cocktails.
#2 Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth
Source: The Hunger Games via Lionsgate Films
Liam Hemsworth was apparently reluctant to kiss Jennifer Lawrence on the set of "The Hunger Games" because he thought she had bad breath. However, Lawrence intentionally ate tuna and garlic before the film's kiss scene. She and Hemsworth were friends in real life, and it seems that she didn't want their friendship to be affected by their on-screen connection.
#3 Cate Blanchett and Brad Pitt
Source: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button via IMDb
Brad Pitt apparently expressed his reluctance to kiss Cate Blanchett when filming "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." Pitt stated his respect for his wife, Angelina Jolie, but some fans were quick to disregard this just because they knew that he had performed countless love sequences in the past when dating. However, in the end, Pitt gave in and he and Blanchett went on to share a kiss in the movie.
#4 Ryan Reynolds and Morena Baccarin
Source: Deadpool via IMDb
Some people might be shocked to learn that the onscreen chemistry between Ryan Reynolds and Morena Baccarin in "Deadpool" wasn't all sunshine and roses. Despite the fact that the two had no enmity against one another, Baccarin said that the kissing sequences were challenging. "It basically just smells like rubber the entire time," she said.
#5 Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon
Source: Water For Elephants via 20th Century Fox
In "Water for Elephants", Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon shared a passionate kiss. However, Witherspoon was reluctant to go through with it initially. Witherspoon decided against filming the scene since Pattinson was suffering from a severe cold at the time. She described the cold as "the most hideous, horrible cold of any costar I've ever had to do a love scene with ever in my entire life." She finally gave in though, and the kiss was captured on camera.
#6 Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan
Source: How I Met Your Mother via CBS
While most people are familiar with Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel from their roles in "How I Met Your Mother," many people don't know that Hannigan was a little hesitant to kiss Segel. She couldn't stand Segel's smoking habit and wouldn't kiss the actor unless he gave up smoking. At first, Segel paid $10 for every cigarette he smoked, but this amount added up quickly and the actor eventually quit smoking permanently.
#7 Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling
Source: The Notebook via New Line Cinema
All of you "The Notebook" fans out there should read this. While leading actors Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams have chemistry together, things got off to a rather chilly start. At the time, Gosling couldn't stand working with McAdams at the time and said he didn't even want to be in the same room as her. He even offered to replace her at one point during the filming. Something must have changed after refusing to kiss her since then they'd been dating for two years.
#8 Scarlett Johansson and Bill Murray
Source: Lost In Translation via IMDb
"Lost In Translation" (2003) starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson was a resounding success. And one of the most famous scenes of the entire movie is another undeclared kiss after Murray's character whispers something in his co-star's ear. The film's director then claimed that Murray improvised each scene to get her reaction, and the kiss was another example of this. The director has since stated that she doesn't know what Murray whispered into Johanson's ear. While this might drive fans crazy, the secret may never be revealed until one of the two decides to go public.
#9 Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts
Source: Pelican Brief via IMDb
Denzel Washington abruptly withdrew from a scene involving a kiss with Julia Roberts during filming "Pelican Brief" (1993). Yet it wasn't because of foul breath or any resentment he had for her. Washington opted out of the kiss instead, citing moral considerations. He said that Black women didn't receive the recognition they deserved and that if he had kissed Roberts, he would have lost a large chunk of his fan base. In a subsequent interview, Roberts would add that deleting the scene was all Washington's decision and that she was ready and looking forward to their scene together.
#10 Julia Roberts and Nick Nolte
Source: I Love Trouble via Buena Vista Pictures
In the 1994 rom-com "I Love Trouble", Julia Roberts and Nick Nolte played characters who fall in love after cooperating to solve a mystery. However, they are said to have hated each other and did everything in their power to make everyone on set uncomfortable during filming. Their relationship eventually got so bad that they refused to film together, and the crew had to use stuntmen. However, the two characters couldn't avoid each other anymore when it came time to film their kiss scene, and they sat down to film the kiss.
#11 Erin Bethea and Kirk Cameron
Source: Fireproof via Samuel Goldwyn Films
As a devout man, Kirk Cameron often avoids interacting too closely with any of his co-stars while they are filming. After being married to Chelsea Noble, his wife, Cameron made a promise to himself that he would never kiss any woman again. During the filming "Fireproof" (2008), Cameron was supposed to be filmed kissing his costar, Erin Bethea. But the producer came up with a creative method to replace Noble with Cameron's wife in the scene. They disguised his wife as Bethea and filmed the scene as a silhouette. This ensured Cameron did not break his oath and allowed the film to continue shooting.
#12 Kelly McGillis and Tom Cruise
Source: Top Gun via Paramount Pictures
It can be difficult to imagine "Top Gun" without the kiss amid the film's famous controversy between Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis. However, it didn't happen that way. In fact, Cruise missed his lines, so he decided to kiss McGilli. It seems to have succeeded because both the sequence and the movie were a pretty big hit.
#13 Bryce Dallas and Chris Pratt
Source: Jurassic World via Universal Pictures
The famous kiss between Bryce Dallas and Chris Pratt in "Jurassic World" was not included in the film's script. However, when the time came for the scene in which we see the two kiss, Dallas said that it just kind of happened. According to Howard, the crew in the background applauded when the kiss occurred on the last take of the sequence. Moreover, Pratt disclosed that he had discussed a potential kiss with the movie's director before it was shot.
#14 Liam Hemsworth and Miley Cyrus
Source: The Last Song via Touchstone Pictures
The romance between Liam Hemsworth and Miley Cyrus received a lot of attention while it was happening, but if it weren't for an impromptu kiss, they would never have started dating. The director of "The Last Song" asked Hemsworth if he'd be okay kissing Cyrus during a scene that originally only had the two wading into the ocean. Without thinking, the actor said "Yes," and the rest is history. During an interview in 2010, Hemsworth said that the situation's spontaneity was actually beneficial to him since it prevented him from having time to consider and become anxious before the kiss.
#15 Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher
Source: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker via Lucasfilm Ltd.
One of the greatest unplanned scenes in movie history may be the on-screen kiss between Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher. In it, two siblings are seen bidding each other farewell for the last time. "No one's ever really gone," Hamill's character said. As Fisher tragically went suddenly after filming, the entire sequence appears to have been improvised, which makes it all the more memorable and appropriate. In an interview with
Entertainment Tonight, Hamill claimed that the sequence and the kiss came naturally at the moment. He has, however, also stated that, in light of Fisher's tragic passing, he feels unable to see it.