With the aim of improving online and blended learning and teaching, this paper analyses students’ emotions of a remote learning experience of French and Italian as foreign languages during the COVID-19 pandemic in a Malaysian university. This data was collected through a distance course survey on learners’ emotions. The validity of this survey was proven by internal consistency coefficient tests and by a pilot survey made by external learners. The descriptive statistics method used (based on a five-point Likert scale) underlined the contradictory effects of the emergency remote teaching (ERT). On one hand, learners were frustrated with the internet and technological tools disruption, and anxious about their competencies in the target foreign language. On the other hand, students’ motivation to learn a new foreign language and their appreciation of the interpersonal interaction (with lecturers and peers) remained high notwithstanding the forced circumstances (the ERT). In addition, due to shyness, students yielded a lack of self-confidence during the online live webcam classes when showing their face and when they had to share their foreign language skills with peers. Lecturers of French and Italian acknowledged the findings of this research and adapted the necessary hybrid and remote teaching changes to improve the quality of the course and to encourage the learners’ positive emotions during their future foreign language classes.