Honestly, if you watched Killing Eve, you probably spent four years screaming at your television. It wasn't just the murders or the incredible outfits. It was the tension. That slow-burn, "will-they-kill-each-other-or-just-get-a-room" energy that defined Eve Polastri and Villanelle. For a long time, the Eve and Villanelle kiss felt like a myth. Like something only found in the deep corners of AO3 fanfiction.
Then it happened. Twice. Sort of.
The thing about this show is that it never gave you what you wanted when you wanted it. It teased. It poked. It stabbed you in the back—literally, in Eve's case. But when those two finally locked lips, it wasn't just a TV moment. It was a cultural reset for a massive, dedicated fanbase that had been dissecting every lingering look and hair-braiding scene since 2018.
The Bus Kiss: A Power Play Wrapped in a Headbutt
Let's go back to Season 3, Episode 3, titled "Meetings Have Reportedly Deteriorated." This was the first time we saw a real Eve and Villanelle kiss, and it was chaotic as hell. It wasn't romantic in the traditional sense. It was a brawl on a London bus.
Eve is exhausted. She's traumatized. She's trying to live a "normal" life at a packaging plant, and then the woman who shot her in Rome just... shows up. They start scrapping. It's desperate and messy. And then, mid-fight, Eve grabs Villanelle and kisses her.
Why did she do it?
Most people assume it was just a distraction. Eve kisses her, Villanelle is stunned (and honestly, looks a bit turned on), and then Eve headbutts her. Classic Eve. But if you look closer, there’s more there. Showrunner Suzanne Heathcote mentioned in interviews that the scene needed to catch Eve as unawares as it caught the audience. It was an impulsive, non-verbal explosion of all that repressed anger and attraction.
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- The Vibe: Gritty, desperate, and violent.
- The Result: Villanelle leaves the bus with a smirk, saying, "And I like it."
- The Fans: Absolutely lost their minds.
It wasn't a "declaration of love" yet. It was a "get out of my head" moment that backfired because it only made the obsession deeper.
The Series Finale: Finally, the Real Deal
Fast forward to the series finale, "Hello, Losers." If the bus kiss was about power, the road trip kiss was about surrender.
They’re in Scotland. They’ve stolen a camper van from a truly annoying couple. They’ve just peed behind a bush together (it’s a weird show, don't ask). There is this quiet, domestic energy that we had never seen before. No one is trying to kill anyone. No one is wearing a wire.
Villanelle gives Eve a quick, tentative kiss on the cheek. It’s sweet. It’s almost shy. And then Eve pulls her back.
This Eve and Villanelle kiss on the side of the road is the one everyone remembers. It’s long. It’s passionate. They’re laughing into it. It felt like the show was finally allowing them to be happy. For about five minutes, anyway.
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The Unscripted Magic
Here is a bit of trivia that makes it better: the actors, Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer, reportedly did that scene in very few takes. There’s a raw, natural feeling to it because the chemistry between those two was always the strongest part of the show. It wasn't about the plot anymore; it was about two people finally admitting they were the only ones who truly saw each other.
"It's not influenced by violence, mind games, or power plays. It is vulnerable, open, and true." — Analysis from Patchwork Mosaic regarding the Season 4 finale.
Why the Ending Ruined the High
You can't talk about the Eve and Villanelle kiss without talking about what happened next. It’s impossible.
Within the same hour of television, they infiltrate a meeting of The Twelve on a boat. Villanelle does the killing; Eve does the dancing (a metaphor for their entire relationship). They hug on the deck, thinking they’ve won. Then, the bullets start flying.
Villanelle is shot. They dive into the Thames. In one of the most controversial visual metaphors in modern TV, Villanelle sinks while Eve reaches for her, and then... THE END.
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The "Bury Your Gays" Backlash
Fans were furious. To give the audience the Eve and Villanelle kiss they had waited years for, only to kill one of them off ten minutes later, felt like a slap in the face. It's a trope known as "Bury Your Gays," where queer characters are denied a happy ending as soon as they find one.
Even Luke Jennings, the author of the original Codename Villanelle books, wasn't a fan. He eventually wrote a piece for The Guardian saying that in his version, they live. He even suggested that "Villanelle will be back" in some form on the page, even if the screen version is dead.
What We Learned from the Obsession
So, why does this specific kiss still get talked about years later?
It’s because Killing Eve was never really about the spy stuff. The Twelve were a vague, confusing mess of a plot point. The heart was always the "moth to a flame" dynamic. The Eve and Villanelle kiss represented the moment Eve finally stopped lying to herself. She spent four seasons pretending she was a "good person" who just happened to be obsessed with a killer. In that kiss, she accepted her own darkness.
Actionable Takeaways for Fans
If you're still feeling the sting of that finale, you aren't alone. Here is how to actually process the "Villaneve" legacy without throwing your remote at the wall:
- Read the Books: Luke Jennings’ trilogy (Codename Villanelle, No Tomorrow, and Die for Me) has a much more definitive, and arguably more satisfying, ending for the pair.
- Watch the "Alt" Edits: The fan community has created incredible "fix-it" edits on YouTube and TikTok that cut out the bridge/river scene entirely. Sometimes, headcanon is better than reality.
- Appreciate the Growth: Focus on the fact that Villanelle, a literal sociopath, learned how to ask for consent and show tenderness. That’s a massive character arc, even if the writers ended it prematurely.
The Eve and Villanelle kiss remains a masterclass in chemistry and a cautionary tale in how to handle a series finale. It was messy, beautiful, and deeply frustrating—just like the women themselves.
To dive deeper into the lore, you might want to look into the "Tower" and "Lovers" tarot card symbols used in the final episode, as they foreshadowed the destruction and unity that played out on that Scottish road.