Ethan Hawke Opens Up About Trying to Flirt With Rihanna in Infamous Courtside Photo

Ethan Hawke has finally come clean about the infamous photos of him flirting with Rihanna courtside at 2015’s NBA All-Star game.

Discussing the matter in a recent interview with Variety, conducted alongside his daughter Maya Hawke, Ethan revealed that his efforts at wooing Rihanna were not successful. A few months ago, the star posted throwback photos of the occasion, which show him slouched down next to a rigid Rihanna. Next to Hawke is his son, Levon, his head in his hands and a look of chagrin on his face.

"I've been caught by the paparazzi openly flirting with Rihanna," he admitted. "Trying to," his daughter corrected him. "Trying to flirt," Ethan shrugs. "So that's been to the family shame, so you're really touching a nerve."

The two Hawkes were promoting their new Flannery O’Connor biopic Wildcat. During a supplementary video interview quizzing the two about their knowledge of one another, Maya was asked whether her father would rather attend a Lady Gaga or a Rihanna concert.

“I have a very fast answer, because that information is really available online,” the younger Hawke quipped before emphasizing: “RiRi baby, by a long shot!” Her father clarified that was true, but only because he’s seen Lady Gaga live and not Rihanna.

“We did have an amazing year where we went to Madonna, Taylor [Swift], and Adele. It was a highly educational, very motivational year for me. It was some very good fathering," Maya added. “But we gotta go see Rihanna next."

You can watch the full video interview below.