--- description: “This is the relationship the world’s been waiting for,” Witherspoon said. title: Adam Rippon and Reese Witherspoon Finally Met image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb021c18681caa38b/69892a338fd2ee310e35af2f/adamripponmeetsreesewitherspoon.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Adam Rippon and Reese Witherspoon Have Taken Their Friendship to New Levels of Excellence by [Melissa Locker](/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 8, 2018 5:07 PM CUT  by [Melissa Locker](/author/melissa-locker/) ## Melissa Locker Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 8, 2018 5:07 PM CUT One outcome of the 2018 Winter Olympics was the founding of a mutual appreciation society between Olympic figure skater [Adam Rippon](http://time.com/5162114/adam-rippon-skate-interview-reactions/ "undefined") and actress Reese Witherspoon. The two stars spent the Olympics tweeting their love of each other: > [](https://twitter.com/RWitherspoon/status/961276680638578688) > [](https://twitter.com/Adaripp/status/961397663416557568) However, they never met until Stephen Colbert invited them both onto _The Late Show_. Unsurprisingly, it was love at first site. The two shared a hug and Witherspoon told the 28-year-old athlete that he was “more handsome in person than even on the ice.” They even held hands during the interview. “This is meant to be,” the [_Wrinkle in Time_](http://time.com/money/5176203/free-screening-wrinkle-in-time-amc/ "undefined")star said upon meeting [Rippon](http://time.com/5189740/adam-rippon-addresses-johnny-weir-jealousy-rumors/ "undefined"). “This is the relationship the world has been waiting for.” [Rippon](http://time.com/5144288/adam-rippon-olympics-2018-bronze/ "undefined") admitted that he had been a fan of Witherspoon’s for a long time. “I think when I watched _Legally Blonde_ that was it. That’s when I fell in love,” he said. “And you’re so beautiful in person.” “Thank you,” Witherspoon replied. “I was talking to Stephen,” [Rippon](http://time.com/5157616/adam-rippon-madison-hubbell-olympics-valentine/ "undefined") quipped. Rippon was in the mood for a pick-me-up, because as he told Colbert, “When I got out here, my life was in shambles.” What had caused the bronze medalist’s life to derail? He lost a button on his shirt before coming out on stage, leaving him with a gaping hole in his shirt. “I’m embarrassed, but I’m not,” he said. “Do you know what I mean?” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5191281/adam-rippon-and-reese-witherspoon-on-colbert/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5191281/adam-rippon-and-reese-witherspoon-on-colbert/"},"headline":"Adam Rippon and Reese Witherspoon Have Taken Their Friendship to New Levels of Excellence","datePublished":"2018-03-08T17:07:55.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:51:13.843Z","description":"“This is the relationship the world’s been waiting for,” Witherspoon said.","url":"https://time.com/5191281/adam-rippon-and-reese-witherspoon-on-colbert/","keywords":["Newsfeed","stephen colbert","Reese Witherspoon","the late show","Late Night Television"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb021c18681caa38b/69892a338fd2ee310e35af2f/adamripponmeetsreesewitherspoon.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Locker","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb021c18681caa38b/69892a338fd2ee310e35af2f/adamripponmeetsreesewitherspoon.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"AdamRipponMeetsReeseWitherspoon","caption":"","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5191281/adam-rippon-and-reese-witherspoon-on-colbert/","name":"Adam Rippon and Reese Witherspoon Have Taken Their Friendship to New Levels of Excellence"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Meet Team USA: Adam Rippon","description":"Meet Team USA: Adam Rippon","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/DMSWeTS3/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2018-02-12T10:10:17.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/DMSWeTS3.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5191281/adam-rippon-and-reese-witherspoon-on-colbert/","duration":"PT1M2S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5191281/adam-rippon-and-reese-witherspoon-on-colbert/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```