When "Don't Worry Darling" geared up for its premiere last year, there was one burning question on fans' minds: "Did Harry Styles spit on Chris Pine?" Months after the scandal, the "Star Trek" actor offered an answer.
In a TikTok interview with Esquire published Wednesday, the "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" star revisited his time on the "Don't Worry Darling" press tour, including that controversial stop at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival.
Half a year after fans speculated that Styles spat in the lap of co-star Pine during the film's premiere at the Venice event, Pine said that wasn't the case.
"He didn't spit on me. I think what he said is he leaned down and I think he said, 'It's just words isn't it?'"
Pine explained that he and his co-stars had "this little joke" about answering press questions while jetlagged and exhausted from promoting the film.
"Sometimes when you're doing these press things, your brain goes befuddled and you know you start speaking gibberish and we had a joke, 'It's just words,'" Pine said.
In the viral Venice moment, Pine was applauding Styles who was about to take his seat. While doing so, the "Watermelon Sugar" singer leaned over Pine, who slowed his applause and took a long look at his lap after Styles sat down. In September a representative for the "Wonder Woman" star said the chatter was "foolish speculation."
After the alleged spit-take made the rounds on the internet, Styles used the moment for material at a Madison Square Garden show.
"Wonderful to be back in New York. I just popped very quickly to Venice to spit on Chris Pine," he said.
"Don't Worry Darling" director and Styles' ex-flame Olivia Wilde also denied the claims that Styles spit on Pine. Speaking on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert," Wilde shut down even more drama surrounding "Don't Worry Darling."
Before the film even debuted, "Don't Worry Darling" was plagued by several scandals, including actor Shia LaBeouf claiming he left the film's lead role on his own terms.
For Wednesday's Esquire cover story, Pine said he "absolutely didn't know about" any of the scandals, and that he could not have "cared."
"If I feel badly, it's because the vitriol that the movie got was absolutely out of proportion with what was onscreen," he said. "Venice was normal things getting swept up in a narrative that people wanted to make, compounded by the metastasizing that can happen in the Twittersphere. It's ridiculous."
———
