Kirsten Dunst brands Brad Pitt 'like an older brother' - despite THAT 'gross' screen kiss when she was just 11 and he was 30

Kirsten Dunst insists Brad Pitt 'was like a brother' while filming Interview With The Vampire - despite her previous criticism of a contentious scene in which the significantly older star kisses her.

The actress was 10-years old when she landed a breakout role in the 1994 gothic horror alongside Tom Cruise, Antonio Banderas, Christian Bale and Pitt - a 30-year old star when he accepted the lead as enigmatic vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac. 

One of few females on a predominantly male set, Dunst had celebrated her eleventh birthday by the time she filmed her first scene as Claudia, a young vampire who is forced to grow in a child's body.

And the American star, now 41, says she was treated with kindness by the films principal cast - notably Pitt, with whom she was required to film a scene she has since described as 'gross.' 

Speaking to The Telegraph, Dunst insists she was 'treated like a princess. Yes, it was a virtually all-male set, but everyone was very gentle and kind, and nothing ever felt weird. Brad was like an older brother to me.' 

The actress also revealed how Cruise, immortal vampire Lestat de Lioncourt in the film, surprised her with a thoughtful gift as they filmed on location at Buckinghamshire's Pinewood Studios over the festive period. 

'And then Tom – well, one morning around Christmas I remember going into my dressing room at Pinewood and he’d set up a beautiful tree in there for me, covered in ornaments,' she recalled. 

However fond memories from her time on set have been muddied by a controversial scene in which du Lac kisses the then 11-year old actress on the lips.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight shortly after its release, she admitted: ‘I hated [the kiss] so much because Brad was like my older brother on set and it's kind of like kissing your brother. 

'It's weird because he's an older guy and I had to kiss him on the lips, so it was gross.’ 

Touching on the scene while promoting Little Women with co-star Samantha Mathis in 1994, a 12-year old Dunst told interviewers: 'I love Brad, he’s so nice … it was just, like, it feels awkward.

'I mean, I’m 12. And he’s, like, 31, and it’s like, he’s a man. So why would I enjoy kissing him?' 

Mathis, who was 24 at the time, admitted she wouldn't turn down an opportunity to kiss the heartthrob, before joking: 'Maybe you’re not into kissing boys yet, so I can relate.' 

Replying to the quip, an unimpressed Dunst shot back: 'Well, especially because Brad is 31. I mean, he’s not exactly a boy.' 

During a later appearance on Conan in 2014, she added: 'I thought it was disgusting. I was 11, it would've been weird if I was like "this is amazing."'

In 2021 she told Vanity Fair that kissing Pitt and biting the neck of a co-star who was apparently sweating profusely at the time were her least favourite memories of the shoot. 

'That was the worst thing I did and also having obviously to kiss Brad Pitt at that point,’ she said. 

‘I was a little girl and he was like a brother to me and it was very weird even though it was a peck. I was very not into it.' 

Adapted from the 1976 novel by author Anne Rice, Interview With The Vampire was a box office hit following its release on Veteran's Day in November 1994. 

The film, directed by Neil Jordan, raked in a worldwide gross of $224million, from an estimated budget of $60million.

Talk show host Oprah Winfrey famously walked out of a screening after being disturbed by its gory content and even considered cancelling a planned interview with Cruise in protest. 

'I believe there are forces of light and darkness in the world,' she said at the time. 'And I don't want to be a contributor to the force of darkness.'