Drew Barrymore and Oprah Winfrey's cozy interview is getting a variety of reactions from viewers
Drew Barrymore caused an online stir when she got touchy-feely with media legend Oprah Winfrey on the Dec. 12 episode of "The Drew Barrymore Show."
The expressive talk host, 48, clasped Winfrey's hand and held it under her chin while using her other hand to caress her guest's arm as the pair chatted.
During another point in the conversation, the two women sat holding hands, and even kept their hands pressed together in the air while Winfrey, 69, gestured as she spoke. When the pair's hands came apart, Barrymore placed her hand on the OWN mogul's leg.
Some of Barrymore's fans commented to say how much they enjoyed seeing the warmth between the two women.
“They connected. I loved the way she is holding Oprah’s hand like a security blanket as she seeks confirmation,” one viewer wrote on YouTube.
"Love this energy," another fan wrote next to a preview clip of the episode Barrymore posted Dec. 11 on Instagram.
However, others believed that Barrymore crossed a line by invading Winfrey's "personal space," with some noting that it looked as though Winfrey was uncomfortable.
"Drew, everyone doesn’t want their hands held boo," one viewer wrote on Instagram.
"The hand hold and the arm being caressed is past my boundary," wrote another.
One Barrymore fan on Instagram reacted to the critical comments by saying they were proof that the United States needed more "affection."
"Maybe if everyone in these comments had more platonic affection in their lives, they wouldn’t be so judgmental & up tight about seeing it," the person wrote.
Barrymore's tendency to get up close with her talk show guests has inspired countless memes and a few late-night talk show jokes over the last year.
When the "Never Been Kissed" star dropped by “The Tonight Show” in April, host Jimmy Fallon made fun of her hands-on interview style.
Fallon showed a photo of Barrymore facing Brooke Shields during an interview. “You guys are basically spooning,” he joked.
He then showed a photo of Barrymore kneeling down close to actor Chloe Bailey.
“You can’t sit in your chair. You get in there,” Fallon observed.
“I feel this magnetic pull,” responded Barrymore.
Barrymore explained that her years of being interviewed as an actor herself helped her to figure out how she wanted to interact with her guests.
“I just wanted to try and sort of think about what I felt my whole life and how I’d be so excited if someone asked me a different question, or there was good energy in the room, or if it didn’t feel like, ‘I’m sitting here asking you a question but I’m not gonna reveal anything about myself,’” she said.
Barrymore added that she couldn't help but feel connected during her "incredible conversations" with her guests.
“I love people. I love every human being on the planet,” she explained. “I’m fascinated and everyone has a story and every person is exceptional and interesting. And it is so fun to literally get to be a conversationalist at work. It’s the coolest thing in the world.”
This article was originally published on TODAY.com