Gayle King on R. Kelly interview: ‘I thought I might get accidentally clobbered’

Gayle King is opening up about her explosive interview with R. Kelly, saying while she never felt in danger with the singer, she could’ve been “accidentally clobbered” when he became emotional.

The “CBS This Morning” co-anchor said Wednesday that she “never thought” that Kelly was going to hit her during her sit-down with the embattled star, during which he stood and yelled expletives at the camera.

{mosads}King was widely lauded for her exclusive interview with Kelly, calmly engaging him and remaining seated as the “Ignition” singer erupted during his first public response to criminal accusations against him.

“It wouldn’t do any good if we both got hysterical,” King told her “CBS This Morning” colleagues while discussing the interview.

“I thought I might get accidentally clobbered, but I didn’t think he’d deliberately try to hurt me,” King said. “I never felt in danger talking to him.”

The 52-year-old performer pleaded not guilty last month to 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse. Three of the women were under the age of 17 at the time of the alleged incidents, which prosecutors say span 1998 to 2010.

The charges in Cook County, Illinois, came after the Lifetime documentary “Surviving R. Kelly” detailed a series of sexual abuse allegations against Kelly when it debuted in January.

“I didn’t do this stuff,” Kelly told King, as he rose from his chair before his publicist calmed him down. “This is not me! I’m fighting for my f—ing life!”

At another point in the interview, Kelly said through tears, “I need somebody to help me not have a big heart, because my heart is so big, people betray me and I keep forgiving them!”

“You sound like you’re playing the victim here,” King replied.

King later said of her conversation with the entertainer, “I just felt he had a lot of emotion, he wanted to release it.”