Harry Styles has referenced the recent rumours that he “spat” on his Don’t Worry Darling co-star Chris Pine.
On Monday (5 September), a brief yet puzzling interaction between the pair at the Venice Film Festival screening of Olivia Wilde’s psychological drama went viral on social media.
In the clip, posted by Twitter user JZMaclin, Styles “appears to spit” on Pine while taking his assigned seat next to the actor, who then looks down at his lap and stops clapping.
Representatives for Pine called the rumours a “complete fabrication”, while sources close to the “As It Was” singer told The Independent that the alleged incident was “not true”.
In his first direct comments about the rumour, Styles quipped about the incident during his return to Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night (7 September).
As seen in a video posted on Twitter, Styles jokingly said: “This is our tenth show at Madison Square Garden. It’s wonderful, wonderful, wonderful to be back in New York. I just popped very quickly to Venice to spit on Chris Pine.”
“But, fret not, we’re back!” he added, amid loud cheers from the crowd.
The speculation surrounding the clip was likely fuelled by the controversies that have mired the press run for Don’t Worry Darling, including a dispute over the nature of actor Shia LaBeouf leaving the project. He was later replaced by Styles.
Representatives for Pine at the time called the “spitting rumour” a “complete fabrication and the result of an odd online illusion that is clearly deceiving and allows for foolish speculation”.
“Just to be clear, Harry Styles did not spit on Chris Pine,” the statement continued. “There is nothing but respect between these two men and any suggestion otherwise is a blatant attempt to create drama that simply does not exist.”
After walking the red carpet for Don’t Worry Darling at Venice Film Festival, with co-stars including Florence Pugh, on 5 September, Styles returned to Madison Square Garden on Wednesday (7 September) for his ongoing 15-night residency.
