The Controversial Tweet About Jacob Elordi That Landed Joey King In Hot Water
Every so often, there's an original movie or show that lands on a streaming service and skyrockets in popularity. In 2018, Joey King and Jacob Elordi were relative unknowns, but their role in the teen rom-com "The Kissing Booth" changed all that. Not only was "The Kissing Booth" very popular on Netflix, but it was also "one of the most-watched movies in the country, and maybe in the world," Netflix's Ted Sarandos told Vulture. The film starred King as Elle Evans, who fell in love with her best friend's brother, played by Elordi, after the two shared a kiss in a kissing booth. It may have been a cliché premise, but it was helped along by the fact that King and Elordi —who began dating IRL — shared plenty of chemistry in the movie.
However, the duo's real-life relationship was derailed by the pressures of dating in the spotlight. King told ET, "In this world, everyone wants to know your business and what you're doing." The breakup meant that it was difficult for King to film "The Kissing Booth" sequels in which she continued to play Elordi's love interest. "No one's thinking to themselves, 'That was easy,' because it wasn't," she explained to Cosmopolitan. "I'm sure people will analyze every movement and every detail. And you know what? Let them."
That's fair. Breakups are awkward enough without having to smooch your ex on TV. Could this awkwardness be part of the reason why King later deleted a tweet calling out Elordi?
Joey King used problematic language in her tweet
Let's back up to the tweet in question. In August 2020, Joey King tweeted and deleted (via Glamour) a response to Jacob Elordi, who told Variety that he hadn't watched "The Kissing Booth 2." The "Euphoria" alum's exact words were, "I haven't seen it. You've seen more than I have." Well, King wasn't buying it. "Jacob watched it. He's capping," she wrote in the since-deleted post (via Us Weekly). Because the actor quickly removed the tweet, fans assumed that it was because she'd shaded Elordi, who — let's face it, basically shaded "The Kissing Booth" first in his interview with Variety. However, King appeared on "The Howard Stern Show" to clarify that she'd deleted her controversial tweet because of its problematic language, not because of any beef with Elordi over the movie.
"'Capping' means lying," she told the host. "I heard the term 'capping' on, like, TikTok and Twitter and Instagram, through friends, and I was like, 'I guess this is the new thing.'" But this was not the case, as King soon came to learn. "It's something I should not have used as a white person," she continued. "I took it down ... two accounts on Twitter called me out for it, that's why I deleted it." For those wondering about Elordi, he supposedly knew about the tweet all along. "I did get his permission to tweet it," King told Howard Stern. No shade, no foul.
Joey King and Jacob Elordi deleted their posts of each other
Reading between the lines, it seems like Joey King and Jacob Elordi's split wasn't amicable. King wiped Elordi from her Instagram, while Elordi deleted his entirely, per Stylecaster. À la Lori Harvey and Michael B. Jordan, it's the modern-day equivalent of saying you're broken up without saying you're broken up. Lastly, the "Kissing Booth" star additionally called the media scrutiny surrounding their romance "brutal," per ET.
Still, she did have some nice words to say about Elordi in the end. "I think it's a good thing we dated in the first place. I learned the most I've ever learned in my life from him," King said (via People). Elordi was also willing to let bygones be bygones. In support of "The Kissing Booth 3" in 2021, he posted a slideshow of images to his Instagram Stories, including one shot of him posing with King at the first movie. "And one from the start @joeyking," he wrote (via Stylecaster), adding a heart emoji. Perhaps, actors always remember their breakout roles (and their co-stars). Since "The Kissing Booth," both King and Elordi have only gone from strength to strength, starring in the likes of HBO's "Euphoria" and Netflix's "Bullet Train," respectively.