When we think of Bridgerton, we think about the gorgeous cast (Hi, Regé-Jean Page!), the beautiful set design, insane wardrobe, and, of course, the sex scenes. Considering the fact that the show is an adaptation of the romance novel series by Julia Quinn, it's no surprise that Bridgerton came with plenty of steamy moments, especially between Simon and Daphne. It's part of why this show was so much fun to watch in the first place — and as it turns out, a lot of effort went into making sure those moments went absolutely perfectly.
Recently, BuzzFeed rounded up behind-the-scenes facts about Bridgerton's most intimate scenes, including their interview with Lizzy Talbot, the show's intimacy coordinator. It's fascinating to hear the process that goes on behind the camera — as well as in front of it — to give us the finished product we drooled over on Netflix when the series began streaming in December 2020.
Here's everything to know about how those Bridgerton sex scenes were filmed. It involves a lot more people than we might have suspected!
The Woman Behind the Sex Scenes Is Lizzy Talbot
She's known as the "intimacy coordinator," which, yes, is a real job. She's the one helping the actors make the steamiest scenes in the series look as real as they do, and she's also worked on shows including The Witcher, The Nevers, and, most recently, Anatomy of a Scandal.
Her Goal Is To Make Sex Scenes Less Awkward
As she told BuzzFeed, she believes that actors have been trained to be as open and vulnerable as possible, but that might actually end up hindering their performance.
"As an actor, you know that if you don't do that, someone else who wants the part is right behind you and is going to," she said. "So there's a huge amount of pressure to do whatever people are asking you to do."
She Got Tons of Time on the 'Bridgerton' Set
Fans of the show should definitely check out her Instagram account. She has plenty of behind-the-scenes photos from the gorgeous Bridgerton set (and pictures that also happen to include the gorgeous Bridgerton actors like Regé-Jean … just saying!
The Show's Steamy Scenes Were Choreographed
And sometimes, that meant it would take a long time to make sure everything was plotted out before filming even began, just to be sure that they'd get it all right.
"We had weeks before filming where we would break down every scene into single choreographed moments," she said.
The First Scene That Phoebe & Regé-Jean Shot Was an Awkward One
Showrunner Chris Van Dusen has pointed out in the past that Phoebe Dynevor and Regé-Jean had to jump right into things on day one of filming. They kicked things off with the scene where Daphne and Simon are having sex in the library. It sounds as if they knocked it out of the park right away, though.
"I knew they were absolute pros at that point, and they knew what they were gonna do," Talbot said.
The Library Scene Was Filmed at a Gentlemen's Club
In fact, women have only been allowed to go there since the 1980s, so if Daphne actually tried to visit in the Regency era, she wouldn't have been able to go in! But this is something that Talbot really liked about this scene.
"It felt super cheeky to be doing a scene of female sexual pleasure in a gentleman's club, and I was like, at that point, 'I see you, Shonda,'" she said.
There Were 'Room Monitors'
Because many of the locations they were using to film were historical locations, there were also people there to keep an eye on things to make sure nothing got broken or damaged, according to what director Julie Anne Robinson told Deadline.
Talbot Described Phoebe Dynevor as 'Brave'
Mostly because she was willing to take on the scene where Daphne was pleasuring herself after Simon told her how to do it, of course.
"It was incredibly brave of Phoebe to take that scene on, because you're not working with anyone else," she said. "So that was an incredibly brave and vulnerable thing that Phoebe took on, and I have so much respect for her."
'Bridgerton' Sparked a Bed Trend
Sounds like a lot of people want to get the Bridgerton look in their own homes! According to Ideal Home magazine, the retailer Argos has seen an 112% increase in the sales of its four-poster beds since the series hit Netflix. Everybody wants to feel like a duchess these days!
They Used Props During Intimate Scenes
According to what Phoebe told The Guardian, there was a lot more going on in those sex scenes than we might imagine.
“We would rehearse the sex scenes like stunts. I would literally know exactly where a guy was going to put his hand at what moment," she said. "And we’d have props, like mats, that went in between us. It was more intricately choreographed than our dance routines in a way, so I never really felt exposed at all.”
Phoebe & Regé-Jean Used Hand Signals
The intimacy coordinator told BuzzFeed that they had a system of hand signals going between the three of them so that Phoebe and Regé-Jean would be able to let her know that they were comfortable with filming.
"I developed like a signaling system with Phoebe and Regé that I knew that they were good to go," she said.
The Actors Had Nudity Contracts
Talbot said that, before filming, the actors would sign nudity contracts to put down on paper what they were and weren't comfortable with showing when they were filming sex scenes. It makes sense — being nude on camera isn't exactly an easy feat, so it's important to know everyone's boundaries.
All the Sex Scenes at Simon's Castle Were Done First
Remember how Phoebe and Regé-Jean started with the library scene? As it turns out, all of those scenes from the honeymoon episode were filmed within the first couple of months of Bridgerton production at Castle Howard. "We shot all of Castle Howard in the first month or two, so that's the entire Taylor Swift montage," she said.
Talbot Mostly Gets Asked About Regé-Jean
It seems as if Bridgerton fans think maybe they can get to him through her — not that we blame them. The Duke of Hastings is so good looking that it's worth shooting a shot! What do they have to lose?
"It's basically turned into a proxy proposal account to Regé at this point," she joked of her Instagram.
Talbot Formed Bonds With the Cast
Just looking through the photos on her Instagram feed, it's clear to see that Talbot was beloved by the Bridgerton cast. Here she is with Sabrina Bartlett (who played Siena) and Jonathan Bailey (who played Anthony Bridgerton). These two had some pretty steamy scenes themselves, so we're guessing they got to work with Talbot a lot, too.
