Gayle King's Most Uncomfortable Interviews On CBS Mornings

The following article includes references to sexual assault, child abuse, and gun violence.

Gayle King's impressive career has spanned decades, earning her three Emmys, a co-host chair on "CBS Mornings," and an incredible reputation with her audience as a stellar journalist. Although the news star may be constantly mistaken for Hoda Kotb, her reporting style is distinctly her own, utilizing her empathetic interviewing skills and nationwide audience to secure sit-downs with a range of celebrities. From Barbara Streisand to Elon Musk and even former President Barack Obama, King has become a trusted morning show staple to bring the most interesting interviews to "CBC Mornings" viewers.

However, like most television presenters, she has also had some off days on the air. While King is usually seen as a sensitive and compassionate co-host, she has conducted a number of interviews that have left her guests feeling uncomfortable. Whether she struggled to gel with her interviewee or simply asked off-the-wall questions they weren't expecting, King has appeared in a trove of awkward clips that the "CBS Mornings" star will likely never be able to live down.

At this point in time, we all know the severity of R&B singer R. Kelly's crimes. After more than 20 years of controversies, allegations, and run-ins with the law, he was finally brought to justice and was sentenced in June 2022 to 30 years in prison for sexually abusing women and children. Further disturbing accounts have since emerged about Kelly, but back in March 2019, the "Ignition" singer had just been charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

A couple months after the groundbreaking docuseries "Surviving R. Kelly" premiered, Kelly was invited to speak with Gayle King to give his side of the story in what has since become an infamous interview. When asked why he agreed to an interview with CBS, the singer responded, "I'm very tired of all the lies." The first portion of his conversation with King seemed relatively light as he denied all the allegations that had come against him, but she soon turned up the heat.

After a few baseline questions, King asked Kelly to speak on whether he'd ever held anybody against their will and his demeanor quickly changed. "I didn't do this stuff. ... I'm fighting for my f***ing life," the singer pleaded. As Kelly leapt out of his chair in agitation and began yelling at the camera, King somehow managed to keep her composure despite the escalation.

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).

Gayle King's impressive net worth and countless fans weren't accumulated by being modest and playing it safe. No, she became an icon by asking the tough questions and ruffling a few feathers along the way; however, she upset many more people than just her interviewee when she sat down with Lisa Leslie, a former WNBA player.

2020 was a tough year for many reasons, but it was kicked off with a devastating blow to Lakers fans as Kobe Bryant was tragically killed in a helicopter crash on January 26. Just a week later, in honor of the basketball star's legacy, King asked Leslie some questions about the longstanding friendship she'd shared with Bryant. "He will be missed, but he will not be forgotten. That's for sure," the Los Angeles Sparks player remarked. Later, King awkwardly brought up the "complicated" legacy the basketball player left behind due to him having a sexual assault charge from 2003 that was later dismissed. Leslie did her best to defend her late friend, saying, "Kobe, he was never like that. ... That's just not the person that I know."

King pushed back, explaining that Leslie would've likely been blind to Bryant's behavior as his friend. The television host's interview went viral, with celebrities like Snoop Dogg calling her out for being disrespectful to Bryant's family for her words. Instead of apologizing, King responded to the controversy by saying the clip had been edited to seem more salacious.

While rap icon Megan Thee Stallion might have a complicated dating history, few were probably expecting it to cause a stir after her interview with Gayle King. In July 2020, after the "Savage" songwriter and a couple friends left a party at Kylie Jenner's house, a disagreement in the car soon turned to violence. When Megan got out of the car, rapper Tory Lanez began shooting at her feet, ultimately hitting both of Megan's feet. She told police at the time that she had stepped on glass out of fear of being subjected to police brutality (the killing of George Floyd had just occurred), but when she eventually came forward with the truth, few believed her.

King invited her to tell her side of the story during a "CBS Mornings" segment, during which she emphasized how frightening the entire ordeal was. "I was really scared 'cause I had never been shot at before," Megan said through tears. The "Sweetest Pie" rapper described how, to this day, she still has bullet fragments in her feet. King then pivoted to ask a more pointed question about whether Megan had a sexual relationship with Lanez at some point.

At this point, Megan became visibly uncomfortable and took her time answering that, no, she hadn't had that type of relationship with Lanez. However, in her 2024 documentary "Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words," the rapper revealed she had lied to King as she believed her relationship with the shooter was "irrelevant" (via Vulture).

Alex Cooper, host of the wildly popular podcast "Call Her Daddy," isn't often one to shy away from uncomfortable topics. She's interviewed countless celebrities like Miley Cyrus and Hunter Schafer about sex, love, life, and deeply personal experiences all in a humorous and candid way. While there have been many big scandals to hit morning television, Cooper's appearance on "CBS Mornings" caused quite a stir — but it wasn't because of anything the podcast host said. It was Gayle King who caused controversy and made headline news when she asked her guest a sexual question during the February 2025 interview.

Cooper discussed the very PG topic of getting married to Matt Kaplan, a film producer, the year prior. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, King asked, "What's your favorite sex position with Matt?" Not only was Cooper caught off guard, but the "CBS Mornings" co-hosts Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson were shocked by the journalist's candor.

"Oh my God, Gayle, are we allowed to talk about that?" the podcast host responded, her mouth hanging open in shock. King was quick to explain that she wasn't really looking for Cooper to answer. Rather, the reporter was, as she said, "making a point" that it's this type of question "Call Her Daddy" guests would be asked. "She's gotten Katy Perry to talk about her love language. She got Hailey Bieber to talk about her favorite sex position. ... I'm amazed," King explained.

While there's no shortage of awkward interviews to be found on the internet, there have been a number of celebrities who've outclassed their interviewer in the smoothest ways. Of course, it's Gayle King's job to push for the inside scoop on a range of topics, but she can sometimes cross a guest's boundaries by being persistent when she asks a question her interviewee clearly don't want to answer. This is exactly what happened when King brought up the Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni drama when actor Brandon Sklenar was visiting "CBS Mornings."

Sklenar starred alongside the feuding celebrities in "It Ends with Us," playing a love interest of Lively's character. Following Lively's sexual harassment lawsuit against Baldoni and his production company, Sklenar petitioned his Instagram followers to read Lively's complaint. However, he has remained otherwise tight-lipped about the scandal.

King took this opportunity to gauge what the actor's thoughts were on Lively and Baldoni's beef, but he answered diplomatically: "I just want people to remember why we made the movie in the first place and what it stands for and just keeping the focus on that." Sklenar elaborated on how the themes of domestic violence in the film were extremely important, and that it was too bad that the meaning of "It Ends with Us" was lost in the drama of his co-stars.

Clearly King wasn't getting the answer she'd hope for, so she asked more directly: "Are you team Blake or team Justin?" Sklenar let out an uncomfortable laugh, answering swiftly, "I'm team 'It Ends with Us.'"

There's probably a lot you don't know about Gayle King, but she made one thing incredibly apparent during one interview in May 2024: She has a bit of a thing for rock star Lenny Kravitz. And who can blame her? But her flirtatious questions soon made for an awkward moment as the "Fly Away" singer attempted to respond in a lighthearted way.

After discussing his career and promoting his latest album on the "CBS Mornings" segment, Kravitz was left speechless when the broadcast journalist asked, "Asking for a friend: Is there love in your life now? Do you have a significant other in your life?" King quickly added, jokingly, "And can I beat her ass if she is?" While the two laughed, she quipped, "Oops, did I say that out loud?"

Clearly unsure of how to respond, Kravitz remarked, "Wow." King quickly followed up by asking the question again, and the "American Woman" singer took the opportunity to answer the reporter in a more serious manner. Kravitz went on to say that he wasn't dating anyone at the moment, but that he would be open to meeting someone new. In what seemed to be a swift recovery from a potentially humiliating moment, King said she felt the same way and shook his hand.

While Gayle King might not be everybody's cup of tea, her way of speaking with her "CBS Morning" guests is often lighthearted and jovial. There have been very few interviewees to lose their cool while sitting down with the reporter, but during her June 2024 conversation with Kevin Costner, it seemed like the "Waterworld" star came close as his composure slipped while discussing his wildly popular series "Yellowstone."

Following Costner's announcement he would be creating a four-part Western movie franchise, "Horizon: An American Saga," he exited from the Paramount series he'd been a part of for five seasons. King questioned the actor about the rumored tension between him and "Yellowstone" creator Taylor Sheridan. "People say this about the two of you: Both big egos, both very powerful, both at the top of their game," she began. "And that right now, maybe you two are playing a game of whose [ego] is bigger?" Costner somewhat avoided King's line of questioning, saying he would return to "Yellowstone" if he'd wanted to. King pressed, asking why he and Sheridan haven't been able to work things out.

Costner quickly shut this line of questioning down, saying, "This isn't therapy, Gayle, I mean we're not gonna discuss this on the show." The reporter laughed to smooth over the tension, offering, "I'm a good therapist, though." Nevertheless, the tone of the interview unfortunately remained uneasy for a few minutes.