Aimee Lou Wood experienced a career-first with the control she was given by an intimacy coordinator before her age gap sex scene aired this week.
Perhaps best known by many for playing Aimee Gibbs in Sex Education, the 30-year-old is currently starring as Chelsea in the third season of The White Lotus.
She’s the partner of Rick (Walton Goggins), as the pair seem to be on odd terms with one another as they turn up for a ‘holiday’ at the Thailand resort. But towards the end of Monday’s (24 February) episode, we got to see a bit of a softer side to their relationship.
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During earlier parts of the two episodes so far, the couple with a 22-year-old age gap, seem to bicker with the very positive Chelsea often calling him ‘old’ and ‘grumpy’.
But in this sex scene, things are far more gentle and intimate as the Wood’s character sits atop of Goggins as he pulls down her top.
With the actor nude on camera, he slowly undresses her, stroking and kissing her breast before they start kissing as it cuts to the next scene.
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And Wood has since opened up about filming the scene as she said the intimacy coordinator, Miriam Lucia, followed her and Goggins’ lead.
“She’s so informed by us. She’s like, ‘You tell me your vision for this scene, and I will make sure that we can execute that in a safe way where everyone’s happy,’” the star told ELLE.com.
So, the actors essentially ‘designed’ their characters’ sex scenes in the show with Wood saying intimacy coordinators’ are ‘absolutely essential’ on set.
When it came to playing Chelsea and Rick, the Daddy Issues star explained: “We were like, ‘This is what we think should happen. This is why we think it’s important.’
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“Because we don’t see a lot of tenderness from Rick to Chelsea the rest of the time.”
She added that they wanted to make sure when the characters are physical and intimate, that we get to ‘see the love’.
“We don’t want it to be like a fucking gratuitous [sex scene]. We wanted it to be very tender,” Wood said.
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The actor then had a career first when Lucia showed her the scene afterwards to get her approval.
Recalling the conversation with the intimacy coordinator, Wood explained: “[She said,] ‘I just want you to watch it. And I want you to know that if you are not happy, we can change it.’
“That was the first time that had ever happened, that someone had straight away been like, ‘Come in this room and watch it.’ She’s like, ‘Obviously it’s your body.’ It’s still a big deal. Nudity is still a weird thing.”
Plus, creator Mike White offered to cut anything out that the star wasn’t comfortable with.
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You can watch The White Lotus on Sky Atlantic and NOW, with new episodes airing on Mondays.
Topics: HBO, TV and Film, Sex and Relationships, Celebrity
Jess Battison