Russell Tovey Praises Tom Blyth’s Soft Lips Then Chooses Jonathan Groff
On Watch What Happens Live (WWHL), Russell Tovey was asked a simple question with a cheeky twist: Who is his favourite on-stage or on-screen kiss? Sitting beside his Plainclothes co-star Tom Blyth, Tovey first praised the man next to him. “Tom is a beautiful kisser. He has very soft lips,” he said, before host Andy Cohen nudged him to name someone else. Tovey picked Jonathan Groff from Looking, adding that they did “lots of kissing.”
The kiss that still lingers.
Fans who watched Looking will not be shocked by his answer. Tovey and Groff built believable intimacy on screen, and Tovey has spoken about how trust made those scenes work. His fresh WWHL comments back that up, and the clip has been shared widely across official channels.
Russell Tovey reveals his favorite on-screen kiss:
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) September 22, 2025
“I quite enjoyed kissing Jonathan Groff in Looking.” pic.twitter.com/HcafFRc16g
How he approaches sex scenes.
Tovey has long been frank about intimacy on set. In past interviews, he said it feels easier to perform explicit scenes with another gay man than with a straight man, because he is careful about boundaries and consent. Those comments, made years before Plainclothes, map neatly to how he still talks about the work.
The first trailer for Carmen Emmi’s ‘PLAINCLOTHES’ is coming soon.
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) August 5, 2025
Starring Tom Blyth & Russell Tovey. pic.twitter.com/E5hZM4ZYtf
Plainclothes is set in 1990s Syracuse and follows Lucas (Tom Blyth), a closeted undercover officer tasked with cruising-site stings, who falls for Andrew (Tovey). It is a tense, period drama about repression, policing and the risk of being seen in LGBTQIA+ spaces. The team used an intimacy coordinator, Joey Massa, to choreograph contact and keep everyone safe, which Tovey has praised in recent press.
The movie premiered at Sundance in January and is now in select US theaters, with distributor Magnolia Pictures promoting the theatrical run. If you are planning a night out, check your local listings.
A playful WWHL segment gave a neat window into Tovey’s process. The soft-lips quip made headlines, sure. But the larger story is his consistent focus on consent, choreography and trust, which matters when a film asks actors to tell a tender, risky love story in a world that punishes it.
Do sex scenes feel different depending on who is opposite you? Tovey has answered that for years, and the work on Plainclothes shows what happens when that honesty meets strong direction.
