Helen Mirren once kissed Stephen Colbert on live TV and her reason made perfect sense: "If I didn't..."
Oscar-winning actress Dame Helen Mirren isn't afraid of a little PDA! In March 2016, Mirren made a dramatic entrance on 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert', leaving the host Stephen Colbert completely stunned. As she walked onstage, Mirren boldly grabbed Colbert by the neck and kissed him on the lips before casually walking away. Colbert, caught off guard, froze in the moment. Reflecting on the surprise kiss, Mirren later quipped to Harper’s Bazaar, "If I didn't do it, then I'd never get to do it. I have been dreaming of doing that for about fifteen years. I just grabbed my chance. I'm sorry."
According to The Standard, Colbert, who was still reeling from Mirren's spontaneous kiss, playfully remarked, "I suddenly can’t remember any questions. That is one of the nicest greetings any guest has ever given me." Mirren dropped a flirty remark to Colbert and said, "Your lips are very soft." Colbert clearly flustered, responded, "Wow. You know what you're doing. You really know what you are doing. Thank you so much for being here."
However, later in the episode, Colbert complimented Mirren over the kiss asking, "Can you imagine the number of people who are jealous of me right now?” After a light chuckle, Mirren jokingly said, “Including me when I watch it. I'll be going, "Oooh!" Why didn’t I do more?” to which Colbert replied, "Well, I'll tell you what, the night is young, Dame Helen. You are absolutely a fantastic actress, a captivating woman and on a level I never imagined before."
Throughout the episode, Colbert and Mirren continue to flirt with each other. After a moment, Colbert turned to Mirren and said, "And you are a Dame." Mirren simply confirmed, "I am." Colbert then added, "I have interviewed some Sirs, they never kissed me." Amused, Mirren curiously asked, "Not even Ian McKellen?" to which Colbert replied, "Not even Ian McKellen. That would have been lovely."
Once the episode was released on YouTube, many viewers flocked to the comments section of the video and raved over Colbert and Mirren's kiss on live TV. One fan quipped, "That is by far the smoothest kiss I have ever seen, anywhere." Another user penned, "The way she shrugged after planting the most smooth kiss on him.... there is no doubt she is the coolest!" Followed by a third user who penned, "She broke Stephen with one kiss. That is power. And I have to say, I'm more than a little jealous of Stephen." Another netizen stated, "Dame Mirren didn't just leave Stephen speechless. She found his pause button!" A fifth fan exclaimed, "That's the most elegant way to kiss a person I have ever seen."
During an interview with Woman's Day, the 'Prime Suspect' star candidly spoke about her bold move of kissing Colbert on the CBS talk show. Along with this, Mirren stated that she had been an admirer of Colbert for some time. As per Daily Mail, Mirren said, "I've been deeply in love with Stephen Colbert for a long time... for real! So as I was walking out, I looked at him and I thought, 'You know what, if I don't take my opportunity now, I'll never have it again!"'