The 97th Academy Awards is well underway, and the A-listers have already walked the Oscars red carpet to settle into their seats at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Just ten minutes into the show, host Conan O'Brien has already addressed the controversy surrounding Emilia Perez star Karla Sofía Gascón, and Cynthia Erivo received a well-deserved standing ovation for her show-opening performance of Defying Gravity from Wicked. Her co-star, Ariana Grande, has been going viral thanks to her unusual tattoo, and Timothée Chalamet wore a buttery yellow Givenchy suit to set himself apart from the wash of soft pastel and monochrome outfits.
But something else was happening on the red carpet as Hollywood's biggest stars made their way into the auditorium - Adrien Brody and Halle Berry had a rather special reunion, and now clips of the pair are going viral.
Over two decades ago, Adrien and Halle made Oscars history with their controversial and impromptu kiss on the Academy Award stage. Back in 2002, Halle won the Best Actress Oscar for Monster's Ball and the following year, she returned to present the Best Actor Award. Beating the likes of Nicolas Cage, Daniel Day-Lewis, Michael Caine and Jack Nicholson, Adrien won the prestigious gold statuette for his performance in Roman Polanski's The Pianist. When he collected his award from Halle, he grabbed her, dipped her, and kissed her, saying: "I bet they didn't tell you that was in the gift bag."
Although Halle looked utterly surprised by what had unfolded, this year the pair spotted one another at the 2025 Oscars, twenty two years after the infamous kiss. Adrien is nominated in the Best Actor category once again, this time for The Brutalist, and Halle is presenting tonight. So when she spotted him on the red carpet, she decided to get him back. After making a beeline for him, Halle interrupted his interview to grab his face and kiss him.
The clips of the surprise kiss have, unsurprisingly, gone viral, and Halle has already re-posted the video herself.
The 97th Academy Awards is currently airing on ITV.
