Awkward Justin Trudeau & Sophie Grégoire Kiss Hints She Checked Out Long Before They Split

Although there were plenty of red flags in Justin and Sophie Trudeau's relationship that hinted they'd never last, the beloved couple's August 2023 split announcement still took everyone by surprise. At the time, Justin and Sophie had been married for 18 years and shared three children. As fans tried to make sense of the reason for their divorce, they stumbled upon an awkward Sophie Grégoire Trudeau moment that was captured by millions, which subsequently put things into sharper perspective. In a viral video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, they shared a noticeably awkward kiss on Canada Day 2020.

Justin Trudeau & Sophie Gregoire are separating.

It was obvious for a few years now she can't stand him. Another video has her telling him to be humble.

This is just another another step in his downfall.

Don't let this news distract you from the important issues Canada facing. pic.twitter.com/7PCvNEqxMl

— Kirk Lubimov (@KirkLubimov) August 2, 2023

To better understand what made the short clip so uncomfortable, we reached out to Blanca Cobb, M.S. Psy, a body language expert and media personality. The expert professed that the former political power couple's body language showed a disconnect from the get-go. However, things got even more uncomfortable when the then-Canadian Prime Minister gave his wife a subtle cue for a kiss. "She turns to him with a closed-lip smile that stays frozen on her face the whole time, like she's going through the motions rather than showing any real affection," Cobb pointed out of Sophie's reaction to her then-husband's nudge. 

Even the small smile that she gave Justin in response felt much more "polite" to the body language expert as opposed to outright affectionate. Cobb added, "After the kiss, she keeps her eyes closed until she turns away and then opens them, which can sometimes signal emotional discomfort or a desire to disconnect from a situation." Of course, there was another glaring sign of disconnect between the couple that was similarly tough to ignore. 

During body language expert Blanca Cobb's exclusive chat with The List, she noted that after the uncomfortable kiss, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau apparently tried to combat the situation's awkwardness with a smile. According to Cobb, Justin Trudeau's stiff body language afterwards hinted that "he may be trying to project confidence, or maybe it's how he's handling the cool response." The situation was only made weirder by the fact that neither of them made any other physical contact during the kiss, as a truly affectionate couple naturally would. 

As a result, it's unsurprising that Cobb believed that Sophie and Justin were playing it up for the cameras rather than showing genuine affection. Many social media commentators felt the same after viewing the video clip, since they reckoned it was a testament to how Sophie had mentally left the relationship years prior. Meanwhile, in a May 2025 Instagram post, Justin Trudeau's ex subtly hinted why they didn't last and had the Internet picking sides. 

As Sophie notably wrote at the time, "Your job is not to carry the weight of everyone else's emotions. [...] It is not your role to fix their reactions, or silence your truth to make others more comfortable." Additionally, depression and anxiety could both be glaring signs that someone wasn't prioritizing their own needs. However, despite everything, there was still a subtle sign that Sophie Grégoire wasn't fully over Justin, even despite her new romance.