Elizabeth Perkins Opens Up About Kissing Her Then-Crush Tom Hanks in Big : 'He Was Adorable'

Moviestore/Shutterstock

Elizabeth Perkins has never forgotten about kissing Tom Hanks.

The actress, 60, recounted the scene with Hanks for the 1988 comedy Big during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live! in response to a fan's question about her "favorite" onscreen kiss.

"He lays one on me about halfway through the movie," she told host Andy Cohen. "I had such a crush on him at the time. I was single."

Hanks, 64, was already off the market, though. He and wife Rita Wilson had begun dating a few years prior after meeting on the set of the ABC sitcom Bosom Buddies.

"He was with Rita Wilson already," she continued. "They were dating but hadn't gotten married yet. So he was completely off limits, but he was adorable."

RELATED: Tom Hanks Says He Paid for Some Forrest Gump Scenes Himself — Including the Famous Run

Perkins also revealed in a different clip that Robert De Niro was originally supposed to play the role that eventually went to Tom Hanks.

"It fell apart because he had a scheduling conflict, and then they went to Tom Hanks," she said. "It's like a totally different movie in my brain with Robert De Niro."

When she auditioned for the film, she read her lines with De Niro, she said.

"He was more moody. It was a little bit of a horror movie," she joked. "What Tom Hanks brought to it was so much lighter."

Last week, Perkins told Page Six that she doesn't think an iconic implied love scene between her and Hanks would be made today.

shutterstock

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"We don't see them having sex but he does take my shirt off," Perkins said. "Actually, I take my shirt off and he touches my breast, then we cut to the elevator door opening and he's got a big smile on his face. We never say, 'Oh they slept together,' but they definitely fooled around."

Perkins said that whether or not the scene was appropriate given he was a boy in a man's body "was not even a consideration of ours at the time. It was not even something we broached or discussed on any level. Different times."

Now, "they wouldn't have shown that at all. I think we're in a different time," she explained, adding that she's "totally on board with that."