A surprising moment unfolded when Keke Palmer was interrupted by a fan who proposed to her while she was speaking onstage at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin.
Palmer was hosting a live recording of her podcast, Baby, This Is Keke Palmer, on Friday alongside her “I Love Boosters” co-stars Demi Moore, Naomi Ackie, Taylour Paige, Poppy Liu and Eiza González when the unexpected incident occurred. During the discussion, a man suddenly rushed toward the stage, dropped to one knee and presented a ring box while asking Palmer to marry him.
The moment left Palmer visibly stunned as the audience and her co-stars reacted with a mix of shock and laughter.
“I can’t marry you. I don’t know you. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry, sir,” Palmer told the fan, prompting laughter from the crowd.
At first, the actress and host wondered whether the proposal was a staged prank. She jokingly asked if the situation was connected to Punk’d, the hidden camera prank show created by Ashton Kutcher. However, staff members and audience members near the stage quickly confirmed that the interruption was not planned.
Security soon stepped in after someone in the audience called for help. A security guard and a SXSW staff member approached the man and asked him to leave the stage area. Despite their requests, he remained on his knees for a moment, insisting that Palmer “wants to say yes,” while several audience members responded loudly that she did not.
The man was eventually escorted out of the venue. Palmer appeared concerned about the situation but remained composed as she apologized to her co-stars and the audience for the disruption.
Keke Palmer then encouraged the audience to take a deep breath so the conversation could continue, and attendees responded with a round of applause for the star’s calm handling of the awkward moment.
The appearance came as Palmer and the cast celebrated their new film I Love Boosters, directed by Boots Riley. The movie premiered as the opening night selection at SXSW on Thursday, with the cast later attending a celebration where Palmer also performed live.