Josh Charles has revisited the time he called Travis Kelce a “d***” while filming Taylor Swift’s song in 2024, and has now revealed why he did so. While the actor admitted that he liked Kelce, he said that he “fell off,” noting that the NFL star was a “real jerk that year.”
Josh Charles recalls interaction with Travis Kelce on Taylor Swift music video set
During an interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Josh Charles explained why he called Travis Kelce a “d***.”
“I’ve always liked Travis Kelce,” Charles clarified. “I just thought he was so cool, but that year that they beat us in the AFC Championship game—they beat the Ravens—he was a real jerk that year.”
“So, you know, I kind of fell off of him,” the Dead Poets Society star continued. “So, when I met him, I said, ‘You know I always liked you, and this year you were kind of a D-I-C-K. What was up with that?”
Fallon brought up the topic after Ethan Hawke mentioned the incident during an interview on The Rich Eisen Show in September 2025. Hawke revealed that Charles and Kelce had a heated exchange while filming Taylor Swift’s song “Fortnight feat. Post Malone.”
Despite his bluntness, Charles said it all worked out between he two, because Kelce took it lightly.
“He laughed. He was like, ‘You know what? You’re right. I’m going to tell you why,’” the Good Wife alum said. He then continued to recall how Kelce explained that his team—the Kansas City Chiefs—was worried about beating the Ravens. So, the athlete explained to him that he had to “come in with some swagger” to the match, which he apparently did.
“He got he got one of our veterans to commit a personal foul. You know, he got in our heads, and it worked for them. They won the game,” the 54-year-old actor admitted. “He was actually great. I mean, we talked about all different kinds of football. He’s such a good dude. I really liked him a lot.”
Originally reported by Harsha Panduranga on ComingSoon.
