Why Is Everyone Making Out on the Red Carpet?

The hottest accessory on the red carpet right now isn't a sheer dress, Tiffany diamonds, or even Julia Fox's bag made out of human hair. Instead, it's public displays of affection (PDA) that are "in" right now, monopolizing award show photo opps, social media posts, and paparazzi snaps.

The notion isn't new; some of the most iconic pairings in entertainment history laid the PDA on thick at highly publicized events (a la Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee or Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt). Now, 2022's punk-rock power couples Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker and Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly have reintroduced PDA French kissing to the zeitgeist by sticking their tongues down each other's throats in front of flashing cameras on what feels like every red carpet lately.

And while they single-handedly brought snogging back in style, they're not the only ones getting frisky at Hollywood soirées. Last night's Grammys red carpet was filled with steamy couple moments, like husband-and-wife duo Justin and Hailey Bieber packing on the PDA and Kourtney's good pal TikTok star Addison Rae licking her boyfriend Omar Fedi (and vice versa) as he grabbed her silk-clad butt.

The loved-up displays are certainly not exclusive to the Grammys; Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are practically the king and queen of PDA, sharing kisses during many a public appearance in the last year — a true full-circle moment channeling their early 2000s young-and-in-love energy. And, of course, who could forget that bathroom selfie of Kourtney and Travis and Megan and MGK smooching?

So why is making out — for a lack of a better word — so hot right now? Are we so deprived of human intimacy after isolating during the COVID-19 pandemic? Naturally, the lockdown prevented most of us from public make-outs. We resorted to steamy movies and TV shows to make us feel a certain way — which would explain people's dissatisfied reaction to the lack of sex in Bridgerton season 2.

Now that we're somewhat getting back to our normal lives (although, it's not completely over yet, people), everyone is jumping right in with some hot and heavy red carpet appearances. And, what do any of us have to lose, really, after two long sexless years? People are ready to make up for lost time and swap saliva, including the stars leading the sensual revolution.

Or perhaps it's just another byproduct of the Y2K resurgence. Like everything else from the early aughts, (platform flip-flops, graphic tees, low-rise pants) messy public smooches — which were practically invented by Madonna and Britney Spears in 2001, by the way — are making a comeback. Or maybe, we should stop analyzing and just accept it for what it is: we're just all a little horny, even celebrities. So relatable!