Ewan McGregor has opened up about filming sex scenes with his wife, and how an intimacy coordinator was necessary to ensure everyone was comfortable.
Intimacy coordinators on movie sets have become the standard practice of late, as they ensure any scenes containing physical intimacy are carried out safely for those involved.
In an interview featured in Radio Times, McGregor shared insights into his experience collaborating with his wife, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, on the set of A Gentleman in Moscow.
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According to McGregor, 52, who first met his wife, 39, on the set of Fargo, the experience of being naked and intimate around others remains peculiar.
The actor disclosed that they had an intimacy coordinator present during the filming of intimate scenes for the new drama series, emphasizing the importance of such roles in today's productions.
"It’s still necessary because it’s also about the crew," McGregor explained. "And it’s odd to be naked in front of people, it’s odd to be intimate in front of the camera."
He drew a parallel between intimate scenes and dance sequences, highlighting the necessity of having a professional to guide and facilitate such moments.
"If you were doing a dance scene, you’d have a choreographer," McGregor pointed out. "It’s an important part of the work now because it’s somebody that the director and actors meet in the middle."
McGregor also stated the significance of intimacy coordinators in protecting actors, particularly younger ones, from feeling pressured into unnecessary scenes that they might later regret.
"My daughter is 22. If an older, famous director goes to a 22-year-old and says, 'I want you to be naked in this scene,' that actress might feel, 'Oh, my God, I’ve got to do it, my career might depend on it,'" McGregor explained. "And then five years after that, she could look back and go, 'I wish I hadn’t. Why am I naked in that scene? It’s unnecessary.'"
McGregor's sentiments echo those of other celebrities who have shared similar experiences. Over the years, stars have admitted to feeling "strange," "awkward," and "uncomfortable" about filming love scenes with their partners, despite assuming it would be simpler.
As reported by the Daily Mail, Angelina Jolie branded it "the strangest thing" to make on-screen love to her then-husband Brad Pitt in By The Sea.
"It's the strangest thing in the world to be lying naked in a bathtub with an iPad that's showing you the shot outside, while your husband is at the door and you're directing him to come in and make love to you in front of a bunch of other men with cameras," she said.
Jolie went on: "I couldn't get out of the bathtub to get to the monitor because the director is naked. We're artists and want to be free, but Brad - it's his wife. He was on towel duty. He'd hold the towel over me."
