The intimacy coordinator of House of the Dragon, Miriam Lucia, recently responded to Sean Bean’s criticism regarding the role of intimacy coordinators on sets.
House of the Dragon is a spinoff of the popular fantasy drama series, Game of Thrones. The show is based on George R.R Martin’s novel, Fire and Blood, and follows the rise and fall of the Targaryen dynasty, leading up to the civil war, the Dance of Dragons.
The series opened to immense critical acclaim and was quick to become a fan favorite, despite only four episodes having been released so far. It has already been renewed for a second season. Like Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon also includes graphic sex scenes.
The job of intimacy coordinators in film and television productions is to make sure cast and crew members on sets are comfortable with filming intimate scenes and are consenting to the same. Last month, popular actor Sean Bean, who also played Ned Stark in Game of Thrones, criticized the role of intimacy coordinators.
According to Bean, having such a professional takes away from “the natural way lovers would behave.” The actor added that coordinators reduce a sex scene to a “technical exercise” as it involves the professional guiding actors to “do this, put your hand there, while you touch his thing.”
Bean’s comments made headlines and several professionals from the entertainment industry responded to his comments, including James Gunn and Amanda Seyfried. They said that the presence of intimacy coordinators is vital and essential to the safety and well-being of those on sets.
In a recent interview with Deadline, Miriam Lucia, the intimacy coordinator of House of the Dragon, shared her thoughts on Bean’s comments. Lucia said that while she understands where Bean is coming from, he belongs to another era of the film industry, and doesn’t understand the importance of intimacy coordinators on sets.
She also defended her profession, explaining that just because sex scenes are coordinated, it does not make them any less “natural” or take away from the emotions of the actors involved.
Check out her statement below –
It was good to hear that following on from Sean Bean’s comments about how intimacy coordinators ruin spontaneity. But I get why he said that, because he doesn’t have the same experience of it, and because this is a new function on sets. People don’t really know what it is that we do. Some question why we’re there. It can still be weird for people who wonder if I’m checking up on whether they’re adhering to the rules of a closed set. But often my work has been done beforehand behind the scenes, talking to the director, the producer, the actors, even lawyers if necessary, in terms of waivers and things that need to happen. And if there’s an issue or a change, or something becomes physically uncomfortable, or mentally uncomfortable, we shift it, but at that point, the work has largely been done, and hopefully it’s seamless. We need to be ready for the shoot date but also to know there won’t be any ugly surprises…I love him as an actor, and I’ve just watched Marriage; he’s great in that. I just think he is a man of a certain age, who has been in this industry for a very long time, and he doesn’t have an experience of the other side. Or maybe he’s had a bad experience of working with an intimacy coordinator. All I would say is that in my experience so far, I don’t think it gets in the way of the creative process. I think it helps to enable the creative process, because I think once you’ve worked out what the actors are comfortable with in terms of touch and consent, and what the movements are going to be, then you add the emotion to it. And then you find the freedom, because you’re not scrambling and fumbling and trying to find it there and then in the moment.
To explain her point-of-view better, Lucia referred to a sex scene from House of the Dragon Episode 4, featuring Emily Carey, who plays young Alicent Hightower in the series. The scene depicts Alicent Hightower (played by 17-year-old Emily Carey) having sex with her ailing husband, Viserys Targaryen (played by 47-year-old Paddy Considine).
Carey expressed extreme discomfort about the age difference and spoke about how helpful it was to have Lucia on the set. Lucia said that it was important to support Carey throughout the filming of the scene. In fact, Lucia also had to take note of Considine’s discomfort, as the actor had a daughter of Carey’s age at that time.
Having an intimacy coordinator on sets is necessary not only to coordinate physical movements but to also make sure everyone involved in the filming is comfortable with the scenes. Bean may have a different opinion, but it is clear that the makers of House of the Dragon are thankful for having Miriam Lucia on sets.
About House Of The Dragon
House of the Dragon is the prequel series to HBO’s blockbuster Game of Thrones based on George R. R. Martin’s book Fire & Blood.
Set three hundred years before the events of Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon will show Westeros under the Targaryen family’s rule before the dragons went extinct. It will follow the Dance of the Dragons, the Targaryen civil war between siblings Aegon II and Rhaenyra, who fought for the throne after the death of their father, Viserys I.
Directed by Ryan Condall and Miguel Sapochnik, the show stars Paddy Considine as Viserys I Targaryen, Emma D’Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen, Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower, Matt Smith as Daemon Targaryen, Tom Glynn-Craney as Aegon II Targaryen, Rhys Ifans as Otto Hightower, Steve Toussaint as Corlys Velaryon, Eve Best as Rhaenys Velaryon, Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria, Fabien Frankel as Criston Cole, and Graham McTavish.
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