Leighton Meester on What Really Happened Between Her and Ariana Grande at the Critics Choice Awards

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When Leighton Meester and Ariana Grande ran into each other at the Critics Choice Awards on January 4, a viral moment was bound to ensue—but the pair didn’t expect it to go the way it did.

Meester spoke on the series finale of her former Gossip Girl co-star Penn Badgley’s podcast, Podcrushed, about what really happened between the two actresses on the red carpet, revealing she had misunderstood what Grande told her. “Like, that is so embarrassing,” she said.

For context, on the night of the Critics Choice Awards, E! posted footage of the two stars’ interaction. Grande had declared her love for Meester. In response, Meester laughed while walking away, leading some fans to interpret it as her mocking the Wicked actress’s well-intentioned comments.

But Meester didn’t hear Grande correctly, she said on the February 18 episode of Podcrushed.

“I walked by Ariana Grande on the red carpet, and when you walk by her, it just becomes a moment on the internet,” she recalled. “And then Kate [her publicist] turns around, and we both heard that, ‘Hi, I love you. Wah, wah, wah.’”

“I couldn’t hear her,” Meester continued. “She was, like, walking away. And I was like, ‘Oh, she’s kind of a comedy queen. She’s just being funny.’ Like, ‘I love you. Wah, wah, wah.’ Like, I thought that would be something she would do. And so I was like, ‘Oh, my God, that’s cute and funny.’ Turns out she didn’t say that.”

The actress said she cleared the air with Grande the following week, adding that Grande had also been amused by her interpretation of their exchange. “She’s like, ‘You thought I said wah, wah, wah? That’s so funny,’’’ Meester said. “And I was like, ‘No, it’s an old person not being able to hear.’ Like, that is so embarrassing.”

Meester and Badgley also reflected on their Gossip Girl days during the episode, revealing they approve of the love interests their characters, Blair Waldorf and Dan Humphrey, ended up with in the finale.

“I think he ended up with who he meant to end up with,” Badgley said, referring to his character ending the show by getting married to Serena Van Der Woodsen (Blake Lively). “And Blair ended up with Chuck [Bass]. I think they ended up with who they were meant to be with.”

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