Should the casual viewer stumble upon Netflix’s Regency-era behemoth Bridgerton, any expectations that this period romance would be as tight-laced as its predecessors goes out the carriage window within the first few minutes. We certainly never saw Matthew MacFayden’s bare bum as he pinned Keira Knightley to a solid oak tree—a sight we’re treated to just three minutes into Bridgerton as the show's introduction to acting family patriarch (and confirmed rake) Anthony (Jonathan Bailey).
Hand grazes and charged glances used to be the only titillation found in historical works of fiction. But in this series—from executive producer Shonda Rhimes and based on the best-selling books by Julia Quinn—there’s sex. And lots of it.
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Perhaps more important, the way the show portrays its buzzed-about love sessions feels not only revolutionary for a period drama, but for modern TV in general. Phoebe Dynevor and Regé-Jean Page do most of the heavy lifting as Daphne and Simon, a pair who falls in love with each other after a honeypot scheme gone wrong. Through the show’s first season we see them, along with Bailey’s Anthony and his musically gifted mistress Sienna (Sabrina Bartlett) dropping trousers, sensually fumbling in gardens, testing the foundations of bleacher rafters, and quite literally ripping bodices as their characters each experience their own kind of awakenings through sex.
Because of this, the show’s intimacy coordinator, Lizzy Talbot, might have been one of the most important people on set. Talbot not only needed to check in with the actors to make sure they were comfortable with scripted scenes as they were shot, she also hosted exhaustive rehearsal sessions that helped the stars choreograph their bedroom (and library, and outdoor) romps so that they seemed as authentic as possible while assuring the comfort and safety of the stars enacting them
So we thought it only fitting that Glamour quiz Talbot on what really went into crafting those NSFW moments, what Page and Dynevor did to cope with the more awkward moments on set, and how Talbot prepared the cast for everyone GIF-ing their “O” face. Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the Bridgerton sex scenes, below.
Glamour: There’s a lot of sex happening in Shonda Rhimes’s Regency era. How were those scenes pitched to you when you came on board?
Lizzy Talbot: One of the aspects of Bridgerton they were very clear about is that this was going to be from the female gaze. It’s the sexual awakening and sexual education journey of Daphne, which was certainly not something that we had seen before in this magnitude. There wasn’t going to be much holding back when it came to female pleasure. We wanted to see orgasms. We wanted to see something that wasn’t just penetrative sex.
You rehearsed with the cast weeks before shooting. What was the mood during those sessions?
It was full of laughter and humor. Regé and Phoebe both have a wicked sense of humor, so that was absolutely wonderful. And Sabrina and Johnny, they’re such close friends. At one point we got called out by production, like, “Are you still rehearsing?” We’d been laughing for the last 15 minutes about something Johnny had said. A lot of the time we were just having so much fun.
Some of these scenes require real athleticism from the cast. Were any particularly difficult to film?
Yeah, we’re very clear about the fact that it’s like doing a stunt. I know there were a lot of people being quite dismissive of this work at the beginning, like, “Oh, it’s just simulating sex. How hard can that be?” Any actor that’s done it will tell you that working in this way is physically exhausting. And if you’re working with any sensitive material, it can be quite emotionally exhausting. Some of the hardest scenes—and all credit to Phoebe here—are the solo scenes because she didn’t have a partner to bounce off of.
Are there any scenes you look back on and think, Wow, I can’t believe we got to do that?
We do a lot on the stairs and ladders. [Laughs.] Practicalities like that could be quite complicated, particularly working at heights. That was one of our first days on set. In fact, I think Phoebe’s first scene was in the library, up that ladder. And it’s far down in the story too—it’s not an early scene. I remember being on set and saying, “Wow, this is really impressive that this is happening so early on. The actors are working with such confidence.”
The cast is also acting out these scenes in historic libraries and castles. Did you have to be careful when it came to how you choreographed some of these moments?
All of the honeymoon scenes were filmed at Castle Howard, a gorgeous castle outside York and pretty iconic for series that have gone before. It was quite nerve-wracking being there. Every single time we were filming in the rooms there had to be…I don’t know if curator is the correct term, but someone from the castle who works there had to be in the room. I’m sure they had a very interesting time. I think most of them were content to just turn around and read a book. We were working with all original, hand-painted wallpaper and original beds. So that added other challenges as well because it was like, “There’s a lot of expensive stuff in this room.” But I know there’ve been talks at Castle Howard of doing sort of a Bridgerton intimacy tour.
Were there any hiccups when shooting these sex scenes, even with all the rehearsal beforehand?
Johnny’s trousers ripped at the back [during the opening sex scene] very unexpectedly. There was a bit of maneuvering there, but we had such a great sense of humor about it.
Were there any Bridgerton sex scenes that the actors improvised or had a lot of input in?
When they are kissing up against the statue outside and it starts to rain, we did a lot of work with Regé and Phoebe. He was really great in that scene because it’s Simon sort of leading Daphne through this sexual awakening. So it’s really lovely that he is leading her this whole time out into the grounds, pulling her close up. Regé really wanted to do that kiss up against the statue, where Phoebe has her hands around his neck. He wanted to use that red kerchief in that scene.
Do you have a favorite intimate scene in the series?
Oh, that’s hard to say. There are also so many scenes that didn’t make it into the final cut. There were a lot more characters that had a lot more to do that you didn’t actually get to see. I want to say nearly in the double digits.
More Bridgertons?
I will say this: There were more characters that had intimate scenes that you didn’t see. But in terms of a favorite scene, it’s not actually simulated sex. It’s that kiss between Regé and Phoebe when they’re outside up against that statue and it starts to rain. I think that’s a really beautiful, romantic moment. It really sums up Bridgerton.
Working with this cast as long as you have, do you think they’re ready to be sex symbols?
They’re very lovely, down-to-earth people. They’ve got such a wonderful cheekiness about them. Johnny is just hilarious. Regé has got such a secret cheekiness about him. During the very early rehearsals, he was generally quite quiet and almost introverted, but then this comment would come out of left field. He’d come out and say something, and we’d all be in hysterics. I think they’re all incredibly capable. They can absolutely laugh at themselves, and that’s key.
Which cast member was willing to go all out for these scenes? Did anyone stand out to you?
They all had to be really brave and vulnerable doing these scenes. And we talked about it, the likelihood that they’re going to be in GIFs, memes, and all that sort of stuff. It’s something you don’t think about, but as soon as it hits the screen, it’s there forever.
You talked about there being a GIF of someone’s bare bum against a tree?
Yeah, or of them having an orgasm or not having an orgasm. What’s really helpful is the awareness going into it and knowing they had control over what we saw. I think it is hard when you’re doing solo work. Phoebe was involved in so many different scenes. You only saw snippets of [her masturbation scene], but we actually filmed a much longer section than you saw. That’s quite a lot to do on your own. I think she had a huge amount on her plate in terms of the sex.