Ashley Graham has responded to the viral clip of her interview with Hugh Grant on the red carpet at the Oscars ceremony on Sunday (12 March).
The British actor was accused by viewers of being “obnoxious” and “rude” to Graham, who was interviewing celebrities on the red carpet on behalf of the ABC pre-Oscars programme.
Grant, known for his dry humour and sarcasm, gave blunt answers to Graham when she asked questions about what he was wearing and how he enjoyed his cameo in the Knives Out sequel Glass Onion.
Graham, 35, asked the Love Actually actor, 62, if he was excited by the prospect of any actors winning in particular, to which he replied: “No one in particular.”
Trying to ask another question, Graham said: “OK, well what are you wearing tonight, then?”
The actor responded: “Just my suit.”
Graham then decided to ask Grant about Glass Onion, which was Oscar nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay. Grant makes a cameo appearance in the film.
"So tell me what was it like to be in Glass Onion?” she asked, adding: “It was such an amazing film. I really loved it. How is it to shoot something like that?”
Grant said: “Well, I’m barely in it. I’m in it for about three seconds.”
Graham responded: “Yeah, but still, you showed up and you had fun, right?”, to which Grant said: “Um, almost.”
Realising she had hit a wall with the actor who was giving blunt answers, Graham wrapped the interview up. Grant appeared to shake his head in confusion as he walked off away from the camera.
Viewers have called the exchange “awkward”, a “disaster” and “painful” to watch, with some accusing Grant of being “rude” and “obnoxious” towards Graham who was asking questions that are typical for the ceremony. Other viewers have asked why Grant attended the event in the first place given that he did not appear enthusiastic about being there.
Graham has now addressed the viral interview, after a reporter asked if she had taken offence to Grant’s responses.
“You know what, my mama told me to kill people with kindness, so there you go,” Graham told US publication TMZ on Monday (13 March).
Graham did not elaborate on the moment further but reiterated she “had such a good time” while interviewing celebrities on the red carpet.
The 2023 ceremony saw big wins for Everything Everywhere All at Once, which took home seven awards, including Best Picture and Best Actress for Michelle Yeoh.
Meanwhile, host Jimmy Kimmel kicked off the Los Angeles event with an opening monologue that saw him poke fun at Avatar director James Cameron, last year’s Will Smith slap and Grant jokingly called himself a “scrotum” compared to Andie MacDowell.
