Notoriously private and publicity-shy actor Joe Alwyn gave the world a glimpse of his playful side during a recent red carpet interview with Chicken Shop Date host Amelia Dimoldenberg at the GQ Men of the Year Awards in London.
Alwyn famously dated Taylor Swift for six years before the pair split in 2023 and his aversion to press was so strong that, even while dating and playing muse to one of the most famous people on the planet, he rarely did interviews or let his guard down at events—which makes the rapid-fire banter and easy chemistry of his exchange with Dimoldenberg stand out all the more.
In a TikTok video of the interaction posted by British GQ, the pair quickly fall into a comfortable rapport, even after Dimoldenberg kicked things off by singing, "Hello, Joe" only to immediately apologize for the awkward greeting. Not missing a beat, Alwyn brushed off any awkwardness, assuring her, “I liked it.”
In a nod to Alwyn's most recent film, The Brutalist, a historical drama about the life and struggles of a fictional architect, Dimoldenberg asked the actor to name his favorite piece of architecture in London. In what served as another nod to the film, Alwyn chose the Barbican, a performing arts center in London that's known for its Brutalist architecture.
“Oh good, I knew you’d say that,” Dimoldenberg, calling the pick “classic" and saying "I was going to say Barbican too," when Alwyn turned the question back on her. This prompted Alwyn to quip that they were "kindred spirits," while flashing a smile that proved that he either A) has a natural flirty charm or B) really, really likes when people like the same architecture as he does.
The flirty exchange is totally on-brand for Dimoldenberg—and any interviewee who's familiar with her popular web series, Chicken Shop Date, in which she does pretty much what the name implies and meets celebrities at chicken shops for interviews that have the casual, awkward energy and promise of going on a date with someone you're excited to talk to.
Alwyn could just be matching the fun, flirty vibe Dimoldenberg is known for, but he wouldn't be the first British actor to actually swoon a bit for her if that's not the case. At 2022's British GQ’s Men of the Year event, Andrew Garfield's first encounter with Dimoldenberg went viral when he approached her to gush, "I think you’re great.”
Dimoldenberg and Garfield's first meeting was the start of a two-year-long full-fledged flirtationship that culminated in a date for her Chicken Shop Date web series, in which Garfield suggested the pair might have real romantic potential if they ever went on a real date, sans cameras.
“Take out all the practicalities and the logic. I actually believe maybe we could’ve, without all of this,” he said, pointing to the cameras filming the "date."
“I think we should do it again, actually, and better," the actor said later in the episode, returning to the idea of going on a real date with Dimoldenberg "This should just be a rehearsal."
When asked if she thought she could ever find real romance through her show, Dimoldenberg insisted she does.
“I have said before, I don’t see why I couldn’t meet someone, like a romantic partner, via the show. Maybe some people might think that is really deluded,” she told TODAY. “I think part of me honestly believes, like, I am actually trying to meet someone and fall in love. And I think that genuine feeling is brought through within the show.”
So, if Alwyn's flirty vibe with Dimoldenberg was sincere, he should probably book an interview on her show (/prepare to fight Andrew Garfield for her love).