Intimacy coordinators have been a hot-button topic in Hollywood as norms and standards for filming intimate scenes have changed in the last several years. But what exactly are intimacy coordinators? And most importantly, what are they used for on the sets of your favorite movies and television shows?
It’s simple. An intimacy coordinator is trained in many functions: as a choreographer, an advocate for actors and a middle-person between actors and production for intimate scenes that may include “nudity, hyper-exposed work, simulated sex acts, and/or intimate physical contact,” explains the Intimacy Directors & Coordinators website.
While the term was coined in 2006, intimacy coordinators weren’t broadly used in the industry until the MeToo Movement shifted cultural norms on sets, highlighting traumatic experiences for actors while filming intimate scenes. According to The Hollywood Reporter, in 2018 HBO was the first network to commit to hiring intimacy coordinators, which has led to permanent change. Now, all of HBO’s shows that include intimate scenes have an intimacy coordinator, and many networks like Netflix, Hulu, Starz and Amazon followed HBO’s lead.
The first HBO show to use an intimacy coordinator was the 2017 drama “The Deuce,” which details the origins of sex work and trade in New York City in the ’70s and ’80s. Because of its explicit scenes, one of its lead actresses, Emily Meade, went directly to HBO executives demanding change, specifically requesting an advocate on set to support her during filmed intimate scenes, Rolling Stone reported.
Since then big-name shows like “Euphoria,” which is widely known for its explicit sex scenes, have used intimacy coordinators. Actors like Sydney Sweeney on “Euphoria” said the experience with her intimacy coordinator “changed my approach to everything. I love having one and I think they should be considered a necessity on every set.”
However, now we are seeing that some actors like “Anora” star Mikey Madison have opted out of using intimacy coordinators, a stance that has sparked controversy and backlash.
Mikey Madison and Sean Baker’s comments
The 25-year-old actress is at the center of a buzzy award season for her role as sex worker married to the son of a Russian oligarch in Sean Baker’s “Anora.” Madison was paired with another awards contender, “The Last Showgirl” star Pamela Anderson for Variety’s Actors on Actors in which they discussed “Anora’s” sensitive subject matter. Anderson shared she had friends who work in the industry and asked Madison if they had used an intimacy coordinator during filming.
“For our film, it was a choice that I made; the filmmakers offered me, if I wanted, an intimacy coordinator,” said Madison. “Mark Eydelshteyn, who plays [my husband] Ivan, and I decided it would be best to just keep it small.”
She continued, “My character is a sex worker, and I had seen Sean’s films and know his dedication to authenticity. I was ready for it. As an actress, I approached it as a job.”
Baker, who wrote and directed “Anora,” shared a similar sentiment during a joint interview with Madison at The Hollywood Reporter. He said they opted out of using an intimacy coordinator because it was the actors’ choice, however, Baker emphasized, “I think it’s very important for an actor to have that option. . . . We like to call them sex shots, not sex scenes, because they’re blocked, they’re calculated.
“But also I have directed sex themes throughout my career, so I was very comfortable doing so and also as a producer on my film, the number one priority is the safety and comfort of my actors,” he said.
Madison added, “We talked at length about each scene, what it would look like. And Sean and his wife and producing partner Sammy [Samantha Quan] would even block out what it would look like [on screen].”
In a separate interview with The Associated Press, Baker said, “We were our own intimacy coordinators, actually,” adding, “It is a “case by case basis, a film by film basis.”
The swift backlash
Since the interview between Anderson and Madison came out, the clip about Madison discussing her experience on set has been viewed on X 19.2 million times.
Some people even brought up that Baker and his wife would demonstrate the sex positions to Madison and h Eydelshteyn. The post said, “I see a lot of people talking about this clip but not a lot of people talking about how insane this is for the director of a film about SEX WORKERS to have himself and his wife fill in as the intimacy coordinators instead of doing it right and having one on set.”
Another person said, “Offering an actor the choice of an intimacy coordinator instead of immediately hiring one feels like a labour law violation.”
One person pointed out, “I’m glad the actors were comfortable during the nudity and sex scenes but I don’t think having an intimacy coordinator should be up for negotiation; this mindset isn’t used toward dance or fight choreographers.”
One person defended Madison’s comments, saying, “Mikey Madison said it was her choice to have an intimacy coordinator. She didn’t trash having one and she made that absolutely clear.”
A meme of the viral discourse also highlighted that even though the internet does not agree with Madison’s comments and decision not to have an intimacy coordinator — she and Eydelshteyn still consented to not have one.
As Madison and Baker gear up for the rest of awards season, they both have not responded to the growing, online controversy about intimacy coordinators.
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