The Ranch alum Ashton Kutcher, 45, has set the record straight on why he posed in an “awkward” manner alongside his Your Place or Mine co-star Reese Witherspoon, 46, during an episode of the podcast Chicks in the Office on Feb. 6. “Here’s the thing: If I put my arm around her and was, like, all friendly with her, I’d be having an affair with her. The rumor would be that I’m having an affair with her,” Ashton began during the clip. “If I stand next to her and I put my hands in my pockets, so there’s no chance that, like, that could be the rumor, the rumor is we don’t like each other.” At the end of his clarification, the 45-year-old Hollywood hunk noted, “Reese and I are really good friends!”
Ashton went on to share that he and the Legally Blonde star are “really close” and that he “doesn’t have to defend that.” The proud father-of-two noted that since he is hard of hearing, it can result in some “awkward” red carpet moments. “I don’t know who’s yelling my name, but I know there’s a lot of people yelling, ‘Reese, Ashton, over here …’ and, at a certain point, you’re looking like, ‘God, this is really something’ … for like 20 minutes,” he continued. “If you’re going to tell me in that entire 20 minutes, at one point, you’re not going to have an awkward face on, then you’re better than I am and I’m cool with that.”
Earlier in the interview, the That ’70s Show alum revealed how his wife, Mila Kunis, 39, texted him and Reese about their poses on the red carpet. “My wife called me, she texted Reese and I together and she’s like, ‘guys you gotta act like you like each other!'”, he said during the podcast. Ironically, the 46-year-old appeared on the TODAY show on Monday and recalled a similar story. “She [Mila] even emailed us last night and goes, ‘you guys look so awkward on the carpet together!'”, Reese quipped during the interview. The mom-of-three even shared how she and Ashton didn’t know each other well prior to filming their new rom-com, as she was friends with Mila first.
Now, one day after the red carpet jokes, Reese took to her Instagram to wish Ashton a happy birthday. “Happy Birthday @aplusk!! Thanks for always making me laugh and remember how fun Rom-Coms are !”, she captioned the sweet selfie of them on set of a press interview on Feb 7. Of course, many of the Oscar-winner’s followers took to the comments to react to the selfie, and some still couldn’t let the “awkward” commentary go. “All those carpet pics….1st time I ever felt awkward in both of your awkwardness with each other,” one fan wrote. Meanwhile, a separate admirer penned how great it is to see them together. “Two VERY likable people!”, the fan commented.
The duo’s highly-anticipated movie, Your Place or Mine is set to hit Netflix on Feb. 10, just days ahead of the Valentine’s Day holiday. Reese first shared a glimpse at the movie on Dec. 15, with a snapshot of her and Ashton in bed together. “Anyone ask for a rom-com??? Your first look at #YourPlaceOrMine is here! Coming to @Netflix on February 10 @aplusk,” she captioned the post. Reese and Ashton star in the Aline Brosh McKenna directed project alongside comedian Tig Notaro, Grey’s Anatomy alum Jesse Williams, and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend‘s Rachel Bloom.