Hollywood starlet and former Bond girl Halle Berry surprised Oscar winner Adrian Brody on the red carpet for the 97th Academy Awards on Sunday with a big smooch as "payback" for the one he gave her 22 years ago.
At the 75th Oscars in 2003, Brody won Best Actor for his performance in Roman Polanski's war drama The Pianist.
When he arrived on the stage of the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California, he embraced Berry, who presented the award, passionately kissed her, and remarked, “I bet they didn’t tell you that was in the gift bag."
Many viewed the spontaneous smooch as a signature moment of that year's awards event.
Before Brody ultimately won his second Oscar for his leading role in The Brutalist on Sunday night, Berry saw him on the red carpet and seized the opportunity for revenge for their lip-locking moment over two decades ago.
Berry extended the love by planting a kiss on the cheek of Brody's girlfriend, Georgina Chapman, who was standing nearby.
Berry recalled the infamous 2003 Oscars moment with Variety’s Marc Malkin, saying:
“That was one hell of a night for him, and for me as well. To be a part of his moment… tonight I had to pay him back."
“I’ve seen him out at parties, but this is the first time since that night that I’ve seen him on the red carpet somewhere. He’s nominated this year. He deserved that," added the 58-year-old.
Berry also shared a clip of their red carpet reunion taken from a different angle and wrote in the caption:
"Surpriseee @adrienbrody!! I had to get some payback."
People shared some thoughts.
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Brody recently touched on the kiss in an interview with Variety.
“We live in a very conscious time, which is a wonderful thing," he observed, adding, "And nothing that I ever do or have done or would’ve done is ever done with the intention of making anyone feel bad.”
After he won a Golden Globe for The Brutalist on January 5, 2025, Berry congratulated Brody on his Instagram post of gratitude for the "truly extraordinary honor."
Berry wrote:
"Congratulations my friend. You care truly one of one!"
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Last night, Brody beat out fellow nominees Timothée Chalamet, Sebastian Stan, Colman Domingo, and Ralph Fiennes for the leading actor category.
As he ascended the stage steps to claim his trophy from presenter Cillian Murphy, Brody turned back and tossed his gum to Chapman, who appeared to have caught it amidst the joyous moment.
Once he got up on stage, Brody broke a Guinness World Record for the longest Oscars acceptance speech that clocked in at a whopping 5 minutes and 40 seconds, well over the standard 45-second speech running time.
After some meandering, the orchestra cued his exit, but he wasn't about to leave the stage anytime soon.
“Turn the music off! I’ve done this before. Thank you. It’s not my first rodeo, but I will be brief," he said, referring to when he was cut off during his acceptance speech for The Pianist. Brody was 29 years old at the time and the youngest to win in the category.
After touching on a number of topics with awkward beats in between, he finally arrived at a poignant moment to acknowledge The Brutalist's backdrop of antisemitism and the holocaust.
“I’m here once again, to represent the lingering traumas, and the repercussions of war and systematic oppression, and of anti-semitism, and racism, and of othering and I believe that I pray for a healthier and happier, and a more inclusive world, and I believe if the past can teach us anything it’s a reminder to not let hate go unchecked," he said.
The night ultimately belonged to Anora, which swept with five Oscars, including one for Best Picture and Best Actress for Mikey Madison.
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