‘Outer Banks’ Star Madelyn Cline Shares How the Iconic Kiss Scene from Season 1 Came To Be

At the height of the pandemic, the Netflix teen drama Outer Banks became a smash hit among young viewers in the United States. When the show first debuted on the streaming service in April 2020, the show became a binge-worthy watch at the start of quarantine. One romantic pairing that fans can’t get enough of is between “The Pogues” leader John B (Chase Stokes) and the Kook Princess Sarah Cameron (Madelyn Cline). Their chemistry was evident at the beginning of the show – but once the two shared a passionate kiss in season 1, they were end game. But how did that iconic kiss scene come to be?

[Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers from Outer Banks]

‘Outer Banks’ kiss scene was not supposed to happen

Outer Banks centers around a close-knit group of teenagers known as “The Pogues.” As they embark on a mission to find lost treasure, they experience a series of unfortunate events.

On Aug. 24, Outer Banks star Madelyn Cline sat down with Jimmy Fallon and revealed the crew did not plan the scene. She shared that the scene almost didn’t happen because the weather was so intense during filming. Outer Banks filmed many scenes in Cline’s home state of South Carolina. 

“I’m from where we shoot, and usually in the summer, these massive thunderstorms or rainstorms will come in the late afternoon. That happened this day,” she continued. “We took a look at the radar, and we saw that it was gonna be happening the rest of the day. So we either called off the day, or we shot through it.”

Both actors agreed the scene would be really “cool and romantic,” so the cast and crew ventured into the rain to shoot the scene. 

“It ended up being this super serendipitous thing where it ended up being kind of like The Notebook,” she added. “It was just really cool.” 

Fans compared the iconic kiss scene to ‘The Notebook’

In episode 4, John B and Sarah returned from their trip to Chapel Hill. Desperate to find the missing treasure aboard the Royal Merchant, they use her father’s credentials to access important documents that could lead them to the treasure. Before they part ways, John B and Sarah share a kiss in the pouring rain. This moment cemented their love for each other. 

Outer Banks fans often compared the scene to the iconic kissing scene in The Notebook between Noah (Ryan Gosling) and Allie (Rachel McAdams). In the movie, Allie asked Noah why he didn’t write to her after they broke up. Allie told Noah that she waited for seven years and it’s too late. Noah explained that he wrote to her every day – then, he says that “it still isn’t over.” They shared a passionate kiss in the rain. The moment became a prominent moment in pop culture and remained an unforgettable scene from the film.

Stokes and Cline’s kiss won an MTV award 

At the 2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards, the actors won the Best Kiss award for their show, Outer Banks. During the acceptance speech, the actors recreated their iconic kiss scene on stage. While thanking their fan for the support, they decided to share a kiss to mark the occasion. The Outer Banks co-stars met on the show and announced their off-screen relationship in June 2020. 

Outer Banks is now streaming on Netflix.