Gayle King Shares Oprah Winfrey’s Emotional Reaction to Her Space Flight

Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King attend the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures 3rd Annual Gala Presented by Rolex at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on December 03, 2023 in Los Angeles, California

Gayle King recently opened up about what her best friend Oprah Winfrey said to her after she returned from a historic Blue Origin flight — and it wasn’t fear that brought Oprah to tears, but pride.

In an interview with E! News, King revealed that many assumed Oprah’s emotional reaction to the space launch meant she was worried something might go wrong. But the CBS Mornings host, 70, clarified that wasn’t the case at all.

“She wasn’t scared,” King said. “She was emotional because she understood the significance of what it took for me to do it. When I landed, she said, ‘I’m so proud of you. You did it.’”

The all-female mission — which launched on April 14, 2025, from Blue Origin’s Launch Site One in West Texas — featured a star-studded crew including pop star Katy Perry, Jeff Bezos’ fiancée Lauren Sánchez, former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, film producer Kerianne Flynn, and bioastronautics researcher Amanda Nguyen.

Although Blue Origin, founded by Bezos in 2000, has only recorded crashes in uncrewed test flights, there was public concern about the safety of this high-profile mission. King, however, said she felt reassured thanks to Oprah’s steady confidence. “She told me I’d be fine,” King said. “And Oprah knows things.”

Blue Origin completed its 11th human spaceflight and the 31st flight of its New Shepard program on Monday, April 14, 2025, when (from left) Lauren Sanchez (Jeff Bezos' fiancé), popstar Katy Perry, former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, film producer Kerianne Flynn, journalist Gayle King, and bioastronautics researcher Amanda Nguyen, took off from Launch Site One in West Texas

Despite the excitement surrounding the launch, the mission also faced backlash. Critics like Olivia Wilde and Jessica Chastain expressed skepticism, calling the expedition a misguided use of wealth and a poor reflection of modern feminism.

Wilde shared a meme about the flight, sarcastically commenting, “Billion dollars bought some good memes I guess.” Meanwhile, actress Olivia Munn voiced her disapproval on TODAY With Jenna & Friends, questioning the purpose of space tourism at a time when so many global issues remain unresolved.

Chastain went a step further, reposting a Guardian op-ed that described the mission as a “defeat for American feminism.”

King defended the endeavor, explaining that Blue Origin’s broader mission is about sustainability and exploring how outer space might help solve Earth’s environmental challenges. “It’s not about ego,” she said. “It’s about looking for ways to take care of our planet.”