A new SAG-AFTRA rule says intimacy coordinators will need to get consent from actors in order to publicly discuss their sex scenes, and failure to do so could mean that they’ll be out of a job.
“Intimacy coordinators are a crucial resource on any set to ensure the protection of our members working in intimate scenes,” a SAG-AFTRA spokesperson told Deadline. “Intimacy coordinators should maintain the confidentiality of an actor’s work and experience in performing highly sensitive scenes unless they have the actor’s permission to publicly share this information.”
“The public release of details about an actor’s scene work or confidences entrusted to the intimacy coordinator without the performer’s consent is unacceptable,” the spokesperson continued.
The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists spokesperson added: “Members have to feel safe, comfortable and confident in engaging with intimacy coordinators.”
If an intimacy coordinator fails to follow this new rule, they can be subject to an investigation and consequently removed from the SAG-AFTRA registry of certified intimacy coordinators.
The new rule comes after intimacy coordinator Kristina Arjona talked to Daily Mail about a controversial sex scene between 21-year-old actress Jenna Ortega and 52-year-old actor Martin Freeman (pictured) in the 2024 film Miller’s Girl.
“There was many, many people throughout this process, engaging with [Jenna] to make sure that it was consistent with what she was comfortable with, and she was very determined and very sure of what she wanted to do,” Arjona said.
The intimacy coordinator went on to say that part of her job was adapting to the “comfort level of my actors, especially on a production like this where there is a large age gap between the actors,” and that she consistently checked in with actors to make sure “their boundaries [weren’t] being surpassed.”
Arjona discussed the sex scenes in the film with the newspaper, despite having signed a confidentiality agreement with Lionsgate, as well as an NDA, sources told Deadline.
The Guild tightened up its Standards and Protocols for intimacy coordinators, especially with regards to confidentiality, after went on during the filming of Ortega and Freeman made it to the media, Deadline noted.
The sex scene between Ortega and Freeman, meanwhile, has faced scrutiny, with some viewers calling it “gross.” Ortega’s character, an 18-year-old student, is seen engaging in sexual acts with Freeman, who plays her much older teacher and mentor.
In September, legendary actor Michael Caine slammed the use of intimacy coordinators in general, telling Daily Mail, “We never had that in my day.”
“Thank God I’m 90 and don’t play lovers anymore is all I can say,” Caine added. “In my day you just did the love scene and got on with it without anyone interfering. It’s all changed.”
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and X/Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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