Scarlett Johansson defends John Travolta, calling the photo of him kissing her on the red carpet at the Academy Awards “an unfortunate still-frame from a live-action encounter that was totally sweet and totally welcome.”

“There is nothing strange, creepy, or inappropriate about John Travolta,” Johansson stated in a statement to The Associated Press. At the Oscars on Sunday, Travolta kissed Johansson and wrapped his arm around her waist. Travolta’s caressing of Idina Menzel’s face when presenting at the Los Angeles ceremony added to the impression made by the photo, which has now become an Internet meme.

(Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

She criticized the “24-hour news cycle” for making the red carpet greeting such a big deal.

“The image that is circulating is an unfortunate still-frame from a live-action encounter that was very sweet and totally welcome,” the statement said. “That still photo does not reflect what preceded and followed if you see the moment live. Yet another way we are misguided, misinformed and sensationalised by the 24-hour news cycle. I haven’t seen John in some years and it is always a pleasure to be greeted by him.”

Travolta also made headlines when he caressed Menzel’s face during their Oscars spoof, which poked fun at his mispronouncing her name as Adel Dazeem last year.

What many viewers perceived as an unpleasant moment was, in fact, planned – at least according to Travolta’s publicist.

In a statement to the press, Travolta’s representative remarked, “It was rehearsed in total. John Travolta loved working with Idina Menzel. John had a great time at the Oscars because his wife, Kelly Preston, and his daughter, Ella, were in attendance with him.”

Travolta, 61, and Johansson, 30, previously starred in the drama A Love Song for Bobby Long in 2004. When Travolta referred to Menzel, 43, as “Adele Dazeem” when introducing her performance of Frozen power song Let It Go at the 2014 Oscars, the two became inextricably linked in the public eye.