On-Screen Kisses That Upset Fans
Whether you're watching a romantic comedy, a classic love story, a tense drama, or an action thriller, a great movie kiss can make or break a movie based on any number of factors. Not only do the actors need to have definitive chemistry with one another, the story needs to build to the point where the kiss is definitely earned. While some movie kisses have become legendary and have scored a place in cinematic history, others have definitely fizzled, and even worse, they've made loyal fans of certain films and franchises pretty upset.
Whether you're adapting a beloved book series, continuing a classic franchise, or telling a brand new story, making an on-screen kiss make sense can be a difficult endeavor, and unfortunately, some of these attempts haven't gone particularly well. From lackluster chemistry to kisses that have aged terribly to controversial relationships and love triangles, here are the most divisive, awkward, and weird on-screen kisses that left fans angry, confused, or upset.
Arwen and Aragorn's randomly raunchy reunion in Return of the King
True to J.R.R. Tolkien's original books, there's very little romance in Peter Jackson's original Lord of the Rings trilogy released in the early 2000s, save for the eternal connection between elven princess Arwen (Liv Tyler) and unwilling heir to the throne of Gondor, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen). After Aragorn sets out to help Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) return the dangerous One Ring to the fires of Mount Doom and destroy it forever, Arwen is left behind to wait, even giving up her immortality to remain in a human realm for her one true love.
Though this decision nearly costs Arwen her life, the two finally reunite during the trilogy's final film, Return of the King, after Aragorn, Frodo, and the Fellowship of the Ring finally defeat the evil forces of Sauron and Aragorn is crowned as Gondor's monarch. In such an emotional scene, where Aragorn honors his hobbit friends shortly afterward, Arwen and Aragorn's kiss feels pretty out of place. Not only does Aragorn practically launch himself at Arwen, but the whole thing involves way too much tongue. Meanwhile, Arwen's father, Elrond (Hugo Weaving), watches fondly from the sidelines, which makes the entire situation that much weirder. Fans love to complain about Return of the King's seemingly endless endings, and this moment definitely doesn't help.
Kylo Ren and Rey's sudden union in The Rise of Skywalker
Star Wars fans found plenty to get mad about in J.J. Abrams' 2019 film The Rise of Skywalker, but the sudden romantic connection between reformed villain Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and Rey (Daisy Ridley) was definitely at the top of the list. As the film comes to an end, Rey, who discovers that she's actually related to the revived, evil Emperor Palpatine, teams up with Kylo to bring him down once and for all, despite the fact that Kylo has fought her several times throughout her quest. Together, the two fight Palpatine, but the effort kills Rey.
With his last remaining ounce of Force, Kylo — who has rechristened himself as Ben, the son of Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) — revives Rey before dying himself, but as she comes back to life, the two share a short, surprising kiss. Reactions from fans were mixed to say the least. After emotionally battering Rey for two movies before Rise of Skywalker, Kylo isn't exactly a solid romantic lead, redemption notwithstanding. Rise of Skywalker was pretty uniformly unpopular with its fans, and this kiss scene is just one of many, many reasons why.
The two leads of The Tourist probably should have stayed home
Despite the fact that the 2010 drama The Tourist was helmed by huge stars Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp, the movie flopped entirely with critics, and the lack of chemistry between its two leads is definitely one of the reasons why. In the film, Depp stars as Frank Tupelo, a lonely man traveling throughout Europe who strikes up a flirtation with a beautiful stranger, Elise-Clifton Ward (Jolie). However, as it turns out, Elise is looking for more than a relationship, and she's using Frank as a decoy for her missing husband. Of course, ultimately, the two discover that they're both keeping secrets.
What should've been a soapy, sexy spy movie is definitely marred by the fact that Depp and Jolie share absolutely no tension or spark on screen, and their many kisses throughout the film — which are stilted, passionless, and make it seem like both Depp and Jolie would rather be anywhere else — leave much to be desired. Anyone who saw The Tourist upon its release likely wasn't impressed, and its kissing scenes certainly didn't help matters.
The central romance in The Shape of Water is extremely twisted
Guillermo del Toro's 2017 film The Shape of Water may have won Best Picture at the Academy Awards in 2018, but for some fans, the central romance fell fairly flat. As Elisa Esposito, Sally Hawkins undertook a difficult role as a mute cleaner at a government lab, where she stumbles across a mysterious amphibian creature (played by Doug Jones) kept in a tank. After bonding with the creature, Elisa realizes that the creature is undergoing a series of harrowing experiments and ultimately helps him escape, even going so far as to form a romantic connection with him.
At first, The Shape of Water seems as if it's simply a film about overcoming strife and differences to form connections, but things quickly get weird when Elisa not only kisses the Amphibian Man but has sex with him and describes it in graphic detail to her coworker and friend Zelda (Octavia Spencer). In an interview with SyFy, Jones said that making the Amphibian Man an attractive, "kissable" creature was a difficult undertaking, and unfortunately, the film fell short of making the Amphibian Man into a convincing romantic lead, despite del Toro's best efforts and intentions.
Bella and Jacob's big kiss caused rifts between Twilight fans
When the Twilight series begins, it's clear that Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart), a brand new resident of Forks, Washington, is entirely in love with the mysterious, handsome Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), who turns out to be a superpowered (and occasionally sparkly) vampire. However, when Edward briefly leaves Forks and Bella behind in the second book and film, New Moon, Bella forms a close friendship with Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner), and over time, Jacob's romantic feelings for Bella start to get in the way of their initially platonic relationship.
The unlikely pair doesn't actually act on their feelings until the franchise's third film, Eclipse, and by then, the kiss between Bella and Jacob — which, it should be noted, is utterly devoid of any passion — created two factions of Twilight fans, who had to choose between being Team Edward or Team Jacob. From that point on, it felt impossible that author Stephenie Meyer or the films themselves could possibly satisfy all of the franchise's fans, and a divide opened up among Twilight fans for good.
Silver Linings Playbook's kisses were way too slobbery
David O. Russell's 2012 awards darling Silver Linings Playbook — which scored Academy Award nominations in all four acting categories, as well as for Best Picture — might be an acclaimed and beloved film, but its kisses are pretty sloppy. The film stars Bradley Cooper as Pat Solitano, a troubled former teacher struggling with bipolar disorder and the dissolution of his marriage, whose life starts to turn around after he meets Tiffany (Academy Award winner Jennifer Lawrence). A young widow with a spotty past, Tiffany needs Pat's help to enter a dance competition, and while she initially gets him involved by promising to help him win back his wife, the two eventually fall in love.
After their final performance, a distraught Tiffany sees Pat talking to his ex-wife and flees, but Pat follows Tiffany to tell her that his marriage is truly over and that he's in love her. Though Cooper and Lawrence's performances are on point and the kiss is at least well-earned, it's a real lip-lock, and apparently, Lawrence said something about it on set. During an appearance on Graham Norton, Cooper recalled that Lawrence told him, "'You're a wet kisser.'" As Cooper pointed out, "You don't want to hear that. It was not a compliment." Pat and Tiffany's happy ending went over well with fans, but their spit-covered kiss was a lot to handle.
Kip and Lafawnduh relationship in Napoleon Dynamite has aged terribly
The Jon Heder-led 2004 sleeper hit Napoleon Dynamite is home to plenty of awkward, weird moments, but the relationship between Napoleon's brother, Kip (Aaron Ruell), and his internet girlfriend, Lafawnduh (Shondrella Avery), has some pretty troubling undertones years after the fact. For most of the movie, it's easy to believe that Lafawnduh is entirely made up. Kip isn't exactly a stunning specimen of a man, and considering that he lied and told his online girlfriend that he's a cage fighter, it seems as if she'd be disappointed when they do meet.
However, not only is the very real Lafawnduh not disappointed, she's enamored with Kip, who immediately begins dressing in vaguely offensive clothing meant to invoke the Black community. Back in 2004, this was probably a pretty funny joke. Nowadays, it would be referred to as "cultural appropriation" at best. This entire gag culminates in Kip and Lafawnduh's bizarre wedding, which features a completely awkward kiss after Kip serenades his bride with a truly terrible original song. Revisiting Napoleon Dynamite has its highlights, but Kip's casual racism and inexplicable relationship — kiss included — isn't one of them.
The Sandlot's kissing scene is actually pretty troubling
The 1993 coming-of-age film The Sandlot might be a beloved childhood classic for many people, but its big kissing scene simply doesn't stand the test of time. The story of a group of young boys on a baseball team during the summer of 1962, The Sandlot has a subplot focused entirely on an attractive young lifeguard at the local pool, Wendy Peffercorn (Marley Shelton), and the boys' shared obsession with her. Eventually, Michael "Squints" Palledorous (Chauncey Leopardi) takes a drastic measure, and in doing so, he throws the concept of consent out of the window completely.
Overcome by his feelings for Wendy, Squints stages a dramatic fake drowning to trick his would-be love into performing mouth to mouth resuscitation on him, leaving his friends to think he's actually dying while he scores an unwilling "kiss" from Wendy. Ultimately, the jig is up when Squints forcibly grabs Wendy's head and forces her deeper into the kiss, disgusting her. The boys are then banned from the pool, but the scene is certainly meant as a joke, and in a post-#MeToo era, it reads as a particularly gross move nowadays.
The Karate Kid doesn't know how to kiss
Ralph Macchio's Daniel LaRusso might be a karate master by the time he finishes his training in 1984's The Karate Kid, but he's still sorely lacking in other departments. Though the film focuses almost entirely on Daniel's training with Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita) so that he can beat rival Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) in a karate championship, it also includes a romantic subplot, and its big kiss definitely leaves a lot to be desired.
Throughout the film, Daniel spends his spare time trying to impress his friend — and Johnny's ex-girlfriend — Ali Mills (Elisabeth Shue), and when the two finally go out, Daniel ends up upsetting Ali. However, they quickly make up, but when they kiss, you might understand why Ali could potentially get mad at him again, as Daniel practically eats her face, laying an open-mouthed kiss on her that somewhat resembles a pelican hunting for prey. Mr. Miyagi might've given Daniel some valuable lessons when it came to forming a closer bond with Ali, but Daniel still has a lot to learn about the art of kissing.
Jurassic World's kiss ignores death, destruction, and carnage
Years after the original film was released in 1993, Jurassic World hit theaters in 2015 with a new leading cast — MCU and Parks and Recreation star Chris Pratt alongside The Help's Bryce Dallas Howard. Set in a universe where Jurassic World is a real, thriving theme park, animal behavior expert Owen Grady (Pratt) and operations manager Claire Dearing (Howard) must work together when the Indominus rex, a genetically engineered new breed of dinosaur, wreaks havoc on the park.
Of course, Owen and Claire end up in a romantic entanglement and share a passionate kiss as they face the dangerous wilds of Jurassic World together, but the circumstances of their kiss are pretty weird, both on and off screen. Not only do the two share said smooch while people are being slaughtered by dinosaurs all around them, but apparently, Howard had no idea that Pratt was going to kiss her at all, as the directors instructed him to do so at the very last minute. Between the haphazard idea behind the kiss and the fact that Owen and Claire doesn't seem to notice screaming, dying people surrounding them, Jurassic World's kiss definitely needed some more thought.
Harry and Ginny lack chemistry in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
As author J.K. Rowling moved towards the end of her seven-part series in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, she saw fit to start pairing off many of our favorite characters, and though fans argued about who should end up with who for years, Rowling's endgame became clear. Despite the fact that many fans wanted Harry, the hero of the story, to end up with his best friend, Hermione, Rowling had Harry fall in love with Ginny Weasley, his other best friend's younger sister and a talented, sharp witch in her own right.
Though Harry and Ginny's connection in the original novel was perfectly and carefully plotted, it didn't translate on-screen, leading to one of the most dull kisses in recent cinematic history. As played by Daniel Radcliffe and Bonnie Wright, Harry and Ginny are fine characters on their own in the films, but unfortunately, the two don't share very much chemistry at all, and the films dedicated basically zero time to build up either Ginny's character or their relationship. As a result, fans were bitterly disappointed when the fiery, passionate relationship they loved between Harry and Ginny in the books translated onscreen as an awkward, passionless kiss in the Room of Requirement. Later on, the two kissed multiple times throughout the final two-part film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, but unfortunately, the chemistry fell flat every single time.
Ron and Hermione's first kiss in Deathly Hallows has no buildup
Clearly, the Harry Potter film franchise falls short frequently where kiss scenes are concerned, and the long-awaited smooch between Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) is no exception. After years of tension and anticipation, Ron and Hermione finally consummate their long-simmering relationship in the final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, but their kiss leaves a lot to be desired ... especially when it comes to the way director David Yates adapted their kiss from the book.
In the film, as Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts' Chamber of Secrets to find basilisk fangs to aid in the final battle, a sudden wave washes over them, and immediately, they share a rushed, relatively lackluster kiss. When you compare this to the scene in the books — where Ron suggests that they rescue Hogwarts' many house elves and Hermione, a supporter of house elf rights, is overcome with emotion — it's definitely lacking, and beyond that, it's pretty obvious that Watson and Grint were uncomfortable filming the scene in the first place. The Harry Potter movies are filled with amazing and epic moments, but their kissing scenes aren't among them.