Celebrity4 min(s) read
Published 17:24 15 Mar 2026 GMT
Harry Styles kisses male SNL co-star as he addresses queerbaiting allegations
Harry Styles addressed "queerbaiting" allegations by kissing a male Saturday Night Live co-star during his opening monologue.
The 32-year-old singer hosted the March 14 episode of the sketch comedy series while also appearing as the musical guest.
During his speech, the former One Direction superstar reflected on the public attention he received when he previously hosted the show in 2019.
"Back then, people seemed to pay a lot of attention to the clothes I was wearing and some people accused me of something called 'queerbaiting'," he said, before joking: "But did it ever occur to you: You don’t know everything about me, Dad!"
The singer continued by introducing his new album, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally, and explained how he came up with the unusual title.
"Some people have asked me, ‘Where I got that title from?’ I did a prompt on Chat GPT that said, 'Give me the most Italian phrase that ever exists.' And it came back with…," Styles joked before dramatically shouting the album title in an exaggerated Italian accent.
He then teased the theme of the record with a joke about affection. "What’s better than kissing all the time? Which I don’t actually do - I don’t kiss all the time,” he said.
Surprise kiss with SNL cast member
The monologue took a comedic turn as several SNL performers appeared on stage, hoping for a kiss from the 'As It Was' pop star.
First, Chloe Fineman walked on behind him before leaving disappointed, followed by Sarah Sherman, who also exited quickly.
"Sometimes, kissing can be great," Styles continued: "You know, if you’re really good at it, and you’re a good person." Then he added another joke. "Or if you have a tight little bum," he said, prompting cast member Ben Marshall to walk onstage.
"Well, you said tight little bum, so where's my kiss?" the 30-year-old comedian said. Styles responded: "C’mon, Ben, everyone knows there’s nothing little about that thang. You’re holding a damn wagon back there."
The 'Watermelon Sugar' musician briefly paused before saying, "whatever, come here,” and leaning in for a kiss with Marshall.
He then turned to the camera afterward and joked: “Now that’s queerbaiting.”
The moment sparked plenty of reactions online.
One viewer wrote: "Reacting to gay rumors by creating more gay rumors," while another fan shared: "I'm queer and I'm so baited please give me more."
A third person commented: "Harry has never addressed a single thing like that in his whole life. Addressing the queer baiting allegations really was unexpected but, hell yeah finally people can shut up."
"I am so tired of people accusing celebrities of queerbaiting. It's really none of our business unless they want to share," a fourth viewer wrote.
"Harry Styles joking about the queerbaiting allegations and kissing a man on main. what the hell, sure," someone else added.
Promoting His New Album
Later in the episode, Styles performed two songs, 'Dance No More' and 'Coming Up Roses,' from his fourth studio album, which was released on March 6.
The album topped the UK charts, selling more than 183,000 copies, according to the Official Charts Company.
The 'Fine Line' musician later opened up about the inspiration behind the album in a recent interview, explaining that it was shaped by his attempts to re-enter everyday life after completing his 22-month Love On Tour tour.
"When you close certain doors off to protect yourself, you also shut out a lot of positive things," he said, per BBC News. "So, I think, for me, it was about being more open, trusting [and] leaning into meeting new people and making new friends and going with the momentum of what it meant to say yes to things for a while."
"And it just really defined the record that I made. It was about me experiencing the world in a way that was different from how I'd experienced it for a long time," he continued. "I think it's encouraging the audience to have their own experiences and and be open to the world."