Gemma Whelan has claimed sex scenes in Game of Thrones lacked direction and resulted in a “frenzied mess”.
Speaking to The Guardian, the 40-year-old actress, who played Yara Greyjoy on the fantasy epic, said that without an intimacy director in the early years, actors were left to choreograph sex scenes.
“They used to just say, ‘When we shout action, go for it!’, and it could be a sort of frenzied mess,” the Killing Eve star recalled.
Whelan remembered a specific scene involving a woman in a brothel, where she and the actress discussed consent beforehand.
“A director might say, ‘Bit of boob biting, then slap her bum and go!’ but I’d always talk it through with the other actor,” she said.
The actress also reiterated that her conversations around consent extended to scenes she filmed with Alfie Allen, who played her brother Theon Greyjoy on the show. Early on, the two shared a controversial scene that was sexually charged due to Allen’s character being unaware that they were siblings.
“Alfie was very much, ‘Is this okay? How are we going to make this work?'” she explained, noting that the process is much easier when a professional is involved. “With intimacy directors, it’s choreography – you move there, I move there, and permission and consent is given before you start. It is a step in the right direction.”
