Rob Lowe identified Nastassja Kinski as the best on-screen kiss of his career, a designation that highlights the specific chemistry and physical presence required to make a romantic scene work for an actor. The "The Outsiders" star made the revelation during a recent appearance on "Watch What Happens Live," where host Andy Cohen was playing the game "Plead the Fifth." When asked what made Kinski the standout choice, Lowe pointed to her appearance during the filming of "The Hotel New Hampshire." "Have a look at her," Lowe said. "At that moment in time, she was probably the most beautiful woman I’d certainly ever seen." Despite the praise, Lowe admitted he felt "very, very scared" to kiss her, suggesting that the intensity of the moment and her presence created a significant pressure on set.
Lowe is not alone in singling out specific co-stars for their kissing abilities. Sharon Stone named Robert De Niro as "the best kisser in the business" during an April interview on SiriusXM’s "Radio Andy." Stone referred to a scene from the 1995 movie "Chicago," noting that the interaction "really just knocked me out." She described a sequence where her character, a hustler, asks De Niro for money to use the bathroom. After he gives her $50, she asks for more, and he hands her $100, prompting her to lean in and kiss him. Stone recalled that when director Martin Scorsese asked if they wanted to film the scene again, both actors agreed they needed one more take.
Conversely, some actors have shared less flattering memories of their romantic scenes. Sylvester Stallone described his kiss with Talia Shire in "Rocky" as "the kiss from hell," though he clarified it was not her fault. In a recent interview with Page Six Hollywood, Stallone explained that Shire’s nose was running badly when they went in for the kiss. He recalled that she coughed during the moment, and he knew immediately that he had contracted the flu. He found himself in bed with a runny nose shortly after filming.
Nicole Kidman took a more direct approach in criticizing a former co-star’s habits. During a March appearance on the "Las Culturistas" podcast, Kidman stated that bad breath is a "dealbreaker" for her. She called out Alexander Skarsgard, her co-star in "Big Little Lies," for eating falafel shortly before filming a romantic scene. Kidman recalled telling Skarsgard to stop eating falafel immediately because it made her uncomfortable before a kiss, emphasizing that she would not proceed with intimate scenes while he had bad breath.
Kate Hudson also compared kisses with former co-stars while playing Vanity Fair’s Lie Detector Test with Janelle Monáe. Hudson described Billy Crudup as a "gentler kisser," likening his style to theater and Stanislavski. When asked about Dane Cook from 2008’s "My Best Friend’s Girl," she simply replied, "No. Canceled." Hudson previously told Gwyneth Paltrow on her "Goop" podcast that her kiss with Matthew McConaughey in "Fool's Gold" was among her worst, citing snot on his face after a plane crash scene in the ocean. She identified Liv Tyler as her favorite on-screen kissing partner, noting she has the softest lips.
Sally Field named Burt Reynolds as her worst on-screen kiss from "Smokey and the Bandit," despite being in a relationship with him at the time. During a December 2022 appearance on "Watch What Happens Live," Field said Reynolds did not do it well. When Cohen asked if it involved tongue, Field clarified it was just a lot of drooling.