If you thought being intimate with strangers for a series or a movie was awkward, imagine having to film those exact scenes with your spouse in front of a crowd. Husband and wife Ewan McGregor and Mary Elizabeth Winstead had to go through the same thing while filming for their upcoming series, A Gentleman in Moscow.
Now, while the two should be quite well-versed in each other’s comforts and discomforts, Ewan McGregor decided that they were still going to have an intimacy coordinator on the set of the series. Why? Well, according to the actor, filming intimate scenes is not just about the couple performing it, but also about the other cast and crew members present on the set.
Ewan McGregor Talks about Having an Intimacy Coordinator
Paramount+ will soon be coming out with their newest historical drama, A Gentleman in Moscow, based on a novel of the same name. In the series, Ewan McGregor will be seen playing the role of Count Alexander Rostov and his wife, Mary Elizabeth Winstead will play his love interest, Anna Urbanova.
Now, the two actors had to film some intimate scenes for the series and decided it would be best for everyone if an intimacy coordinator was present at the scene. In the cover story for Radio Times, McGregor talked about why having an intimacy coordinator available was necessary despite the fact that his partner was none other than his wife.
McGregor stated,
“It’s still necessary, because it’s also about the crew. And it’s odd to be naked in front of people, it’s odd to be intimate in front of the camera. If you were doing a dance scene, you’d have a choreographer. It’s an important part of the work now, because it’s somebody that the director and actors meet in the middle.”
Honestly, he couldn’t have explained it any better. Further, McGregor highlighted the importance of having an intimacy coordinator regardless of who you are performing the scenes with. He gave the example of his 22-year-old daughter stating that an actress of her age could feel forced into performing such scenes and an intimacy coordinator ensures that she doesn’t have to do anything against her will and has nothing to regret in the future.
“My daughter is 22. If an older, famous director goes to a 22-year-old and says, ‘I want you to be naked in this scene,’ that actress might feel, ‘Oh, my God, I’ve got to do it, my career might depend on it.’ And then five years after that, she could look back and go, ‘I wish I hadn’t. Why am I naked in that scene? It’s unnecessary.’”
It’s always nice to see actors care about such important but less talked about parts of filming and McGregor’s point of view on the whole intimacy coordinator topic is absolutely commendable. Take notes, everyone!
Ewan McGregor on Working with His Wife
Talking to CBS Mornings, McGregor opened up about working with Winstead on A Gentleman in Moscow. When the host stated that she’s always curious to see a couple working together and asked about the actor’s experience, McGregor couldn’t shut up about the beautiful chemistry between him and Winstead.
He stated,
“It’s such a joy to work with Mary. We met working together on ‘Fargo,’ season 3 of ‘Fargo.’ We have a – I don’t know, we click when we are working. It’s very instinctive and wonderful. These two characters are really wonderful characters to play.”
McGregor further talked about how hilarious it was to film scenes where his wife’s character was absolutely furious with his character and would give him the cold shoulder.
“So, for some years thereafter she keeps appearing in the hotel and totally cold shoulders him. Won’t look in his direction. And for us, as married people in love, to play those scenes is very funny.”
We cannot imagine how much fun the duo must have had working together on the sets of the historical drama. And now that we have McGregor’s input on the topic, it’ll be even more incredible to see the two playing each other’s love interests!
A Gentleman in Moscow will be available to stream on Paramount+ on March 29, 2024.
