ON screen, sex scenes are about giving the viewers what they want – sizzling chemistry and believable passion, all designed to get fans hot under the collar.
However, often behind the camera, it’s a totally different story.
Thankfully there are some age-old – and quite frankly bizarre – trade secrets and tricks actors use to get through being quite so up-close and personal with their co-stars.
Here, the stars reveal what really goes on behind the (sex) scenes, from flesh-coloured modesty pouches to getting ‘hammered’.
Practice makes perfect
When Netflix series Bridgerton came out all viewers could talk about were the sex scenes – of which there were plenty.
In the first series, it was the chemistry between lead actors Phoebe Dynevor, who played Daphne Basset, and Regé-Jean Page, who played husband Duke of Hastings Simon Bassett, which really attracted attention.
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Speaking to Glamour, Phoebe said: “We did the intimate scenes like stunts — we blocked them out, so you have yoga balls in between you and all sorts of things that never make you feel exposed in any way.
“You always feel safe. I’d rehearse with Regé so much that we both knew what we were doing. It felt very practical.”
Speaking on The Late Show, Rege also revealed: “Phoebe and I had horrendous coffee breath the whole way through!
“We made a pact early on.
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“It’s one of the things that you do – you approach other actors and say, ‘Hey, the scene is after lunch. What are our rules? Are we no onions? Are we no garlic? Do we have to get the coffee in early?’
“And then we both were like, ‘Actually, I really like coffee, so I don’t mind that on you.’ Thank God! So we had a coffee safe space the whole way through that show.”
Bum makeovers
Actor Jonathan Bailey was also involved in his fair share of sex scenes playing Anthony Bridgerton in the same series – and viewers were actually introduced to his derriere first.
He previously joked: “Who wouldn’t want to play a character whose bottom you get to know before the face?”
Speaking about keeping it professional, the actor added: “Doing any sex scenes felt really empowered and the women felt really safe, which as a man is important, and in turn you feel really safe.
“But there is a moment when they say ‘can we lower the britches’ and when I lowered them they were like ‘can we call in make-up?’ And that’s when you go (grimaces) but luckily it was just to shine the botty.”
In an interview with Radio Times, the actor said times had changed for the better, saying: “It’s amazing how that whole industry has just come on, even in a year.
“There are new tricks to the trade – little cushions – and it’s amazing what you can do with a half-inflated netball.
“If there are two people doing a sex scene, the rule is they must have three barriers separating them and there are certain acts where a half-inflated netball can allow for movement without having to connect physically.
“It’s pretty silly really and we have some hilarious moments, but it makes it less awkward.”
Roll with it
A netball isn’t the only helpful bit of sporting equipment that can be used to aid a sex scene, either.
For Kate Winslet, a “little exercise ball” was used to aid a scene in 2005 film Romance and Cigarettes.
After spraining her ankle, Director John Turturro said his solution to avoid making the injury worse was to: “Put Kate on a little ball, a little exercise ball.
“I had two prop guys to hold her and I realised they may start laughing, so I said, ‘Put something in your mouth because I don’t want you laughing’.”
Getting ‘hammered’
If all else fails, plenty of celebs have admitted to giving themselves a little ‘Dutch courage’ before any particularly intimate scenes.
For example, Jennifer Lawrence said before she got down to business on camera in the 2016 film Passengers with co-star Chris Pratt she felt “guilty” as he was married to Anna Faris at the time.
She says: “I was like, ‘Oh, I’m gonna get hammered for the sex scene cause it’s stressful and scary.
“That led to more anxiety when I got home because I was like, ‘What have I done? I don’t know’.”
Speaking about the experience, Chris added: “I’ve done a simulated sex scene before, so it was less weird for me, but for Jen it was the first time she’d ever done anything like that.
So [the director] said: ‘Do you want to have a glass of wine?’ Because just like in real life it takes the edge off a bit.
“If that’s what it takes to get comfortable, why not?”
Barbie star Margot Robbie adopted for the same strategy before filming scenes with Leonardo DiCaprio in 2013 flick The Wolf of Wall Street – although she opted for something a little stronger,
She said: “I’m not going to lie, I had a couple of shots of tequila before that scene because I was nervous… very, very nervous.
“I did three shots of tequila at like nine in the morning, right before doing it.”
Flesh-coloured bags & ‘sticky’ thongs
Of course, Fifty Shades stars Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson had more than their fair share of sex scenes, so they’re very much experts in the field.
Jamie previously told GQ: “Your dignity is intact as much as it’s all tucked away in a little flesh-coloured bag…
“As a guy you put all your essentials in a little bag and you tie it up like a little bag of grapes and it’s tucked away. It’s quite a peculiar thing to do every day.”
Speaking to Marie Claire, Dakota added: “I had these sort of strapless thongs that had glue on them.
“It’s not glue, but it’s sticky. They’re, like, basically if it were a nipple pastie, but underwear.
“But it’s only sticky at the top, it’s not sticky the whole way. It would also come off because the adhesive would wear out, so then they would superglue it to my body so that it wouldn’t fall off.
“And I would wear two of them.”
Smiley face nipple covers
A lot of stars will also inject some much needed comedy into their up-close and personal encounters.
For example, Wrexham co-owner Ryan Reynolds admitted being surprised by a prank his co-star Olivia Wilde pulled in 2011 film, The Change-Up.
He told The Tonight Show: “I take her top off and the bra off, and she has those pasties on…
“But she’s drawn these adorable little smiley faces on them.
“At some point in the scene she takes my hands and puts them on her breasts… Palms a little sweaty… I don’t know what’s happening. …
“I take my hands away and I look down at my hands and there’s two frickin’ smiley faces on them and I have no idea what to do.”
Speaking more generally about sex scenes, Olivia previously told Fox News: “People imagine it’s this really glamorous and sexy thing, but I always laugh because in reality there are 50 people in the room.
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“You are stopping and starting.
“There is someone yelling, like, ‘Can you move your hand, can you just put your shoulder down, OK, good, more, more!’.”
