Kevin Hart and Don Cheadle love each other, they just have a weird way of showing it.
Viewers witnessed their interesting dynamic when the Iron Man actor appeared on the comedian's new Peacock talk show Hart to Heart on Thursday, Aug. 12. The two friends discussed various topics, including Don's philanthropic efforts, at which point he shared, "And me, you know, I'm 56 years old..."
To this, Kevin said, "Damn!" effectively cutting Don off mid-sentence.
What followed was an awkward silence and much glaring from Don. Kevin was contrite about appearing to age-shame the actor, but defended himself and said, in effect, that he didn't mean it that way.
In the end, the interview carried on without aanother hitch, though not before Don gave Kevin some good-natured grief.
Understandably, the moment went viral on social media, as many criticized Kevin for his response to Don's age. But Cheadle shook it off, writing on Twitter, "i think this is my favorite interview ever."
Now, Don is reiterating that conversations like these are par for the course when it comes to himself and Kevin. "EVERYBODY, please watch the entire episode. On top of understanding that this is just how we play it's a really good one, I think," he wrote in a tweet on Aug. 13. "The first question he asks me is, 'drugs; do you do them?' In the parking lot I said he looked like a black-o-lantern in that suit. It's just us."
And what about those rumors that Don was in on the bit all along? "no, boo. that ain't how it went down ..." the Hotel Rwanda actor shared.
Though Don is amused by fans' reaction to their interview, he is also dismayed by those who don't see that it was all in good fun. "the comments ..." he quipped. "i didn't know 2021 would be the year both humor and intellect died !!"
Someone who definitely appreciated Kevin's joke was Jodie Turner-Smith, who co-stars with Don in the upcoming series White Noise. She joked, "i have been walking around this set saying 'DAMN!' to @DonCheadle for the last 6hrs."
Kevin continues to serve up jokes and sincere conversations on Hart to Heart, streaming now on Peacock.
(E! News and Peacock are both members of the NBCUniversal family.)