Queen Oprah Winfrey has spoken about that viral interview with host Drew Barrymore on the latter’s eponymous talk show. On Tuesday, Barrymore welcomed the esteemed entertainment personality on her show and fans believed she got a little too close for comfort.
A video was shared on “The Drew Barrymore Show” Instagram page, in which the two stars talked about their respective talk show experiences and why spending additional time with audience members after tapings is important. Winfrey stated that she did that frequently for the “Oprah Winfrey Show.”
During the discussion, Barrymore held Winfrey’s hand extremely close to her face for some reason and weirdly caressed her arm. Of course, this threw social media into a tizzy, with users noting that Barrymore apparently doesn’t understand the concept of personal space.
One commenter observed how uncomfortable Winfrey looked: “Oprah’s body language was so clear she wanted her hand back.” When approached about the moment, she was graceful and humorous.
When TMZ caught up with Winfrey, the star stated: “I was actually comforted by the stroking of the arm. I was not uncomfortable at all,” adding that even though she had “never seen [Barrymore] do that,” she “thought it was really great.”
“Drew is terrific, and I love that she is always herself,” Winfrey said. She even made a joke about wanting partner Stedman Graham to do the same. “I went home and told Stedman, ‘You’ve gotta stroke my arm. Stedman, I need to be stroked on the arm.’”
Barrymore’s interview with Winfrey, as was the case with past guests, was cringey due to her proclivity for being touchy-feeling during interactions. Even though the legendary host was very kind about everything, we hope Barrymore is paying attention to the valid criticism and will take a different approach on air.