It’s finally Chris Pine’s turn to explain what exactly went down at the Venice Film Festival last September.
What happens in Venice, stays in Venice. Unless, of course, it is broadcasted all over Twitter and intensely analyzed by eagle-eyed fans. Last year, the cast of Olivia Wilde’s psycho-thriller Don’t Worry Darling attended the annual Venice Film Festival in style. Chris Pine, Gemma Chan, Harry Styles, Nick Kroll, and Florence Pugh all made appearances on the carpet and attended press junkets before the special screening of the film. But what started as a normal night celebrating film quickly spiraled into hilarious memes, the infamous Spit-Gate, and a new catchphrase for the movie. Who remembers Styles saying his “favorite thing about the movie is that it feels like a movie”?
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Chris Pine Ends Spit-Gate Rumors
It was an eventful night for everyone in Venice and at home on Twitter. Especially after Styles was accused of spitting on his co-star Pine right before the film screening. Honestly, it does look like the Grammy Award-winning singer could have hocked a loogie before taking his seat. But a recent interview with Pine is giving us new details into what really happened that night.
The Dungeons & Dragons star recently sat down with Esquire to answer important questions about his career and address those pesky spitting rumors.
Chris pine just wondered where his sunglasses were after the applause. And he zoned out (likes he’s been doing all day) and realised it’s in his lap. So I am sorry to say harry styles did not spit on him. pic.twitter.com/7b4GoCvnHJ
— priscilla (@cinemazietgeist) September 6, 2022
“Simple yes or no, Mr. Pine, please explain,” the actor read allowed. “Did Harry spit on me?” The final answer is… no.
“Harry did not spit on me. He’s a very kind guy,” he continued. The actor also revealed he had no idea what was happening online at the time. It was not until his publicist woke him up on the way home from Venice that he discovered the rumor.
“She wakes me up in a state and she says, ‘We have to craft a message on what happened in Venice.’ And I was like, ‘About what?’ ‘About Harry spitting on you,'” he said. “I had no idea what happened. She showed me the thing and it does look, indeed, like Harry spitting on me. He didn’t spit on me.
“He leaned down and I think he said, ‘It’s just words, isn’t it?’ “We had this little joke. We were all jet lagged, we’re all trying to answer questions and sometimes when you’re doing these press things your brain goes befuddled and you start speaking gibberish, so we had a joke: ‘It’s just words, man.'”
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This might also explain Styles’ “feels like a movie quote.” It’s all just words, man. Though Pine did not immediately respond to the rumors, his team did issue a statement.
“This is a ridiculous story,” they told EW. “A complete fabrication and the result of an odd online illusion that is clearly deceiving and allows for foolish speculation. Just to be clear, Harry Styles did NOT spit on Chris Pine.”
They added, “There is nothing but respect between these two men and any suggestion otherwise is a blatant attempt to create drama that simply does not exist.”
Styles did respond to spitting on Chris Pine, and he did it while on stage in New York. “I just popped very quickly to Venice to spit on Chris Pine,” he said during one of his live performances.
Harry breaking his silence about the spitting incident with Chris Pine! #LoveOnTourNYC (Via esnydaylights) pic.twitter.com/NnQJdVqE8r
— Harry Styles Updates. (@TheHarryNews) September 8, 2022
Is this finally the end of Spit-Gate? Maybe. Pine also laughed at the memes created about him and it’s so adorable and wholesome.