‘House Of The Dragon’ intimacy coordinator responds to Sean Bean criticism: “He doesn’t have the same experience”

"People don’t really know what it is that we do. Some question why we’re there"

House Of The Dragon intimacy coordinator Miriam Lucia has addressed Sean Bean‘s comments about on-set protocol for sex scenes.

Last month, Bean was met with widespread criticism after he suggested that intimacy coordinators “spoil the spontaneity” of sex scenes.

Now, in an interview with Deadline, Lucia has opened up about her experience working as a coordinator on the new Game Of Thrones spin-off, highlighting the importance of her role in the wake of Bean’s comments.

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Addressing a scene in which Alicent Hightower (played by a then 18-year-old Emily Carey) is made to sleep with her much older husband King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine), Lucia spoke of the necessity of having an intimacy coordinator on set.

“She [Carey] basically said she was very frightened ahead of that scene, and that without an intimacy coordinator she wouldn’t have known how to handle it,” she said.

“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.”

Alicent Hightower
Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey) in ‘House Of The Dragon’. CREDIT: Sky/HBO

Lucia went on to explain her role in greater detail, saying: “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.

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“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.

She added: “We need to be ready for the shoot date but also to know there won’t be any ugly surprises.”

Among those to criticise Beans comments were West Side Story star Rachel Zegler, The Good Place actress Jameela Jamil and Emma Thompson.

“Intimacy coordinators establish an environment of safety for actors,” Zegler tweeted at the time. “I was extremely grateful for the one we had on WSS – they showed grace to a newcomer like myself + educated those around me who’ve had years of experience.

Urging Bean to “wake up”, she added: “Spontaneity in intimate scenes can be unsafe.”

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