Over the last few years, there have been some heated conversations surrounding the idea of intimacy coordinators in Hollywood. Most actors have expressed how safe they feel using intimacy coordinators, while a small handful have criticized the practice.
Ewan McGregor and costar Mary Elizabeth Winstead were on board with having an intimacy coordinator on the set of Showtime’s upcoming series A Gentleman In Moscow, even though the two have been married for several years. McGregor told Radio Times that it’s necessary to have coordinators no matter the relationships between the actors.
It’s still necessary, because it’s also about the crew,” McGregor told the outlet. “And it’s odd to be naked in front of people, it’s odd to be intimate in front of the camera.” The actor compared the situation to hiring a choreographer for a dance sequence. “If you were doing a dance scene, you’d have a choreographer. It’s an important part of the work now, because it’s somebody that the director and actors meet in the middle,” he added.
The actor then explained why it should be the industry norm to implement these roles. “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 said.
Hopefully, the end result is that many young actors will feel safer on sets now.
