The Most Pause-Worthy Kisses In TV History

As TV fans, we know that — much like real-life smooches — not all on-screen kisses deliver on their promise. Sometimes, however, television kisses can be satisfying. On occasion, they can even become monumental pop culture moments.

The best TV kisses are the ones that leave a lasting impression. Perhaps it's because the characters (and maybe even the actors) are experiencing their first kiss in a tender coming-of-age display that reminds us of our own youth, or perhaps it's the first time a highly anticipated couple is puckering up. Or maybe it's just a good old fashioned makeout scene. All can be great.

We've taken a deep dive into television history and come up with a list of some of the most iconic kisses ever to grace the small screen. Though this list skews modern — which is only natural, given how censors have loosened up in the last few decades — these smooches come from a variety of time periods and reflect numerous genres. Some were boundary-breaking, while others were key moments for the show and the characters involved.

A small disclaimer: We've limited ourselves to one smooch per series (otherwise this list could have been, like, 50% "Dawson's Creek"). Here are some of the all-time most pause-worthy kisses in television history.

Our second smooch also depicts a first kiss moment between a much-shipped couple, but with a very different context. Viewers were thrilled when crime novel writer Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) planted one on Detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic), the NYPD officer that he shadowed on the regular, in Season 3 of "Castle." The kiss in question is not so much of a show of true affection as it is a ploy to create a diversion, but it works on multiple levels. It tricks the person it's intended to trick, and it gives viewers a memorable moment between the couple known to fans as "Caskett." At one point, Beckett retreats from Castle, looks him directly in the eyes, and then goes back in for more.

The Castle-Beckett romance may have started with a ruse, but it did not end there. Beckett eventually breaks up with her boyfriend, Dr. Josh Davidson (Victor Webster), but refutes or ignores Castle's proclamations of love after she does so. At the start of Season 5, they are revealed to be officially an item. Caskett marries in Season 7, briefly splits up in Season 8, and then reunites toward the end of the show (it ended with Season 8). In a flash-forward sequence, the couple is shown together with three kids — and who knows if Beckett would have ever unlocked her feelings if not for that initial kiss.

It is almost unbelievable that "Fleabag" only ran for two seasons because it offered so much in each and every one of its jam packed 12 episodes. After all, there is a reason it earned 64 awards — and another 69 nominations — during its short run, including six Primetime Emmy Awards. All of these Emmy nominations and wins came during the show's second season, and we don't want to say that it is because of the hot priest, but it's not not because of him. The hot priest (Andrew Scott) had incredible chemistry with main character Fleabag (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), despite their romance being strictly off-limits.

Then again, the fact that it was off-limits was what made it so exciting, both for the characters and the audience. How often do we get a storyline where a total hot mess of a human gets with a man of the cloth? Not often! The couple's best moment was hands-down their first kiss, which occurred in Season 2. After a raw and vulnerable confession, hot priest walks over to her side of the box, bends down, caresses her face, and plants one on her. The music and the dark lighting only intensify the drama. "For an audience seeking a morally ambiguous relationship that they can still enjoy — a rarity in an era of sexual ugliness being dragged into the light — Fleabag and The Priest hit the spot," the Catholic journal Commonweal said.

We know that Juliana Margulies is represented twice on our list, but she just so happens to be part of some of television's most noteworthy smooches and there is no way we could leave this one out. "ER" is one of the biggest shows of all time, after all. It lasted a whopping fifteen seasons, continuously topped the ratings charts, and is one of the most Emmy nominated series ever (it received an eye-watering 124 nominations). Key to the show's success were its leading actors, especially George Clooney, who played Dr. Doug Ross.

Doug's relationship with nurse Carol Hathaway (Margulies) was one of the show's most popular storylines, but one kiss stands out in particular — the kiss the pair shared in Season 6, Episode 21. Clooney left the show after Season 5, which is what made this particular kiss so unexpectedly awesome. In the episode, Carol realizes how much she loved Doug, who has since moved away to Seattle despite sharing twins with Carol (he left before he knew she was pregnant). So, she heads to Seattle to see him. Though it starts off tentative before developing into a full-blown passionate make out, the smooch they share proves nothing has changed between them. Their reunion was also the perfect way to end the Doug-Carol love story, as Margulies left the show after the episode, and the fact that the show was able to keep Clooney's guest appearance a surprise only added to the excitement.

When we first met Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh), she was married to a teacher named Niko (Owen McDonnell) and seemingly happy with him. But as Eve began tracking professional assassin and all-around psychopath Villanelle (Jodie Comer), she developed an obsession with the woman. Over time, that obsession became erotically charged, and both women developed unexpected feelings for one another. We were not surprised when they crossed that line and kissed, but we were surprised by when and how it happened. By the time they kissed, Eve and Villanelle had already been through much together, including Eve stabbing Villanelle (in Season 1) and Villanelle shooting Eve (in Season 2). And they say romance is dead!

In the big kiss scene, Villanelle boards a bus that she knows Eve is on, which causes a scared Eve to lunge at her. Eventually, Villanelle restrains Eve on one of the bus seats. "Smell me, Eve," she asks. "What do I smell like to you?" Eve then leans up for a kiss, pulls back so the two can share eye contact, and then headbutts Villanelle. It's intensely violent and sensual all at once, and Oh and Comer sell the hell out of it (as they do everything). "I really just wanted to subvert those expectations and have it at a moment when, not only does the audience least expect it, but Eve would least expect it too," showrunner Suzanne Heathcote said in an interview with Decider.

This is the sole entry on our list that does not come from a fictional series, but it is too monumental a pop culture moment to ignore. People are still talking about the performance where Madonna kissed Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, despite the fact that it happened nearly two decades and hundreds of awards show performances ago. To this day, we still do not see nearly as many same-sex kisses in pop culture as we do other-sex kisses, especially when it comes to mainstream events like the VMAs. When Adam Lambert tried it a few years later, it was much less well-received (per CNN). More recently, Lil Nas X kissed a male dancer during his BET performance, but, even in 2021, some people still reacted with homophobic remarks (per USA Today).

Sexual double standards are real; when Madonna kissed two of the reigning princesses of pop, there was no real outrage. Instead, people treated it like an exciting stunt with a juicy amount of shock value, particularly enhanced by the immediate cutaway to Justin Timberlake's stone-cold reaction face. Spears and Aguilera were both dressed in tiny white outfits, having just finished singing "Like A Virgin" with Madge, and Madonna suggestively removed Aguilera's garter as she sang her hit "Hollywood." She then turned to Brit and gave her a sloppy kiss, before planting one on X-Tina. The performance was history in the making.

"Shameless" was a very important show for queer representation, highlighting multiple LGBTQ+ characters and relationships over the years. The most central one of these was the relationship between Ian Gallagher (Cameron Monaghan) and his eventual husband Mickey Milkovich (Noel Fisher). While Mickey was not a very good person — nor was he an especially good boyfriend when the pair first got together — he pushed against cultural stereotypes and presented a very different gay man compared to what is typically seen on television. Monaghan and Fisher also had amazing chemistry, making us root for the relationship.

Many of Ian and Mickey's early love scenes lacked intimacy and tenderness. This is because the couple began as a clandestine pair and because of Mickey's own internalized homophobia. They had a sexual relationship long before they had an emotional one, and the couple, known to shippers as Gallovich, did not even kiss until Season 3, Episode 5. That is why the smooch we have chosen — which happened in Season 4, Episode 18 — was so monumental. It takes place in a club and marks the first time Mickey shows true affection to Ian in public. You can feel the passion, and it deeply enhances the depth of the characters' relationship.