Steve Carell has fond memories of his early encounter with Taylor Swift.
During his appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday, June 10, the host mentioned Carell's admiration for the pop superstar.
"You know, I was doing some research about things people might not know about you, and I read somewhere that you are a Swiftie," Fallon, 49, said. "A Taylor Swift fan."
Following cheers from the audience, Carell, 61, responded, "Listen, I met — briefly — Taylor Swift."
"Remember TRL, way back? Early in both our careers, I was obviously much older, but we were both on TRL at the same time," Carell continued. "I met her in passing and thought, 'Boy, she seems special,' even back then. Very sweet, very nice. Just had a really nice first impression."
Carell then recalled finding a video of Swift, now 34, playing the guitar for a patient in the hospital many years later.
"Some kid who was recovering from something," Carell explained. "There was no big crew. It was a low-key, handheld thing she did on the sly."
The Office star admired the unpublicized gesture, saying, "That's so cool. Just leading with her heart."
"I thought, 'Okay, I'm a fan. I'm going to root for that person,'" he added.
Fallon praised Carell as a "really nice human" as well, to which Carell humorously insisted his kindness was an act for the cameras.
"No, not Taylor Swift level," Carell said.
"No, but you're up there," Fallon continued, prompting laughter. "You're one of the nicest."
Carell jokingly replied, "It's an act, come on! Hollywood stuff. It's what gets you ahead. Just wait until the cameras go off," he added with a laugh.