Heather Graham has spoken of mixed feelings about Hollywood’s “awkward” new approach to filming sex scenes.
Graham opened up about working with an intimacy coordinator in the wake of the #MeToo movement.
“I think the MeToo movement has been great[and]I think there’s very good intentions behind the intimacy coordinators. But it’s weird when you don’t have an intimacy coordinator and all of a sudden there’s a random person in the room staring at you while you’re pretending to have sex,” she told Us Weekly. “It’s kind of awkward.”
“I know they have great intentions and they really want to help and protect actors,” Graham continued. “But as an actor, sometimes you think, ‘Can we just get all these people out of the room?'”
Graham, who starred in “Boogie Nights,” slammed the “confusing” new reality of filming sex scenes. She recalled a moment on set where she felt the intimacy coordinator was going too far.
“At one point, we had an intimacy coordinator and they started coaching us on how to have sex in the scene,” Graham recalled. “They were like, ‘If you do this, you can do this.’ And I was like, ‘You’re not a director, are you?’ I’m not asking for notes on how to have sex in the field. ”
“I was like, ‘Shut up,'” she added. “I said, ‘Tell this to the director…because I don’t want two different people directing it.’ It’s confusing.”
“At one point, we had an intimacy coordinator who started coaching us on how to have sex in certain scenes,” Graham recalled.
“They were like, ‘If you do this, you can do this.’ And I was like, ‘You’re not a director, are you?’ I’m not asking for notes on how to have sex in the field. ”
“I was like, ‘Shut up,'” she added. “I said, ‘Tell this to the director…because I don’t want two different people directing it.’ It’s confusing.”
Graham began his career with bit parts in commercials and television, then appeared in teen films such as “License to Drive” and “Drugstore Cowboy.”
She got her breakout roles in “Boogie Nights,” “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me,” and “Bowfinger.”
Graham landed a role in the blockbuster movie The Hangover in 2009. Since then, she has branched out into writing and directing projects while continuing to act in film and television. Her latest film, They Will Kill You, will be released on March 27th.
The “Killing Me Softly” star explained that after a career spanning several decades, she feels confident enough not to need the help of an intimacy coordinator.
“Maybe it’s better when you’re young and don’t know how to advocate for yourself and advocate for yourself,” the 56-year-old actress said.
“I feel like I’m strong enough at this point.”
“That’s why I don’t want too many extra people in the room.”
