Megan Lawless Reveals the Risky ‘Obsession’ Scene That Pushed the Film Toward NC-17 Rating

Megan Lawless is talking about a scene in the horror film Obsession that almost pushed the movie into NC-17 territory. The comments come from an interview and behind-the-scenes discussion reported after the film’s release and festival run.

In the movie, Lawless plays a character named Sarah, and she says one of her death scenes stood out the most for everyone involved. The scene became so intense in early cuts that it nearly caused rating issues before being adjusted for the final version.

She explained that filming the moment was both strange and funny behind the scenes, even though it looks very dark on screen. Lawless described how the production team used practical effects and careful staging to make the scene work safely.

“That was my favorite day on set. It was just a little ridiculous, if you take a step back and you see everything that’s going on behind the scenes,” she said.

She talked about her co-star Inde Navarrette, who wore protective gear during filming to safely perform the action sequence. According to Lawless, the actors had to fully commit to the physical performance even when the setup felt unusual.

“She had to commit to running into the glass as fast as she could and charging at me. We had to play out this thing that felt a little silly, but with 100 percent commitment, as actors do,” she said.

@themeganlawless WARNING MAJOR @Obsession SPOILERS! Before we locked tf in #obsession #bts ♬ original sound – themeganlawless

Lawless also explained that the team had very limited takes to get everything right, which added pressure to the shoot. Safety rules meant the actors could not actually make full contact, so parts of the scene were performed with miming and stunt coordination.

“We had to get it right in two takes. They were like, ‘Don’t actually hold her head hard or push her head in. We can’t do that for safety reasons,’” she said.

She added that parts of the final shot used props, including a dummy version of her character for certain effects. Even though the scene looks violent in the film, much of it was carefully constructed in pieces.

Lawless said there was also an earlier version of the sequence that was even more intense, and it caused concern about the film’s rating after it was shown at the Toronto International Film Festival. That version reportedly included stronger sound design and more graphic elements.

“It’s so funny you asked that, because the reaction was completely unexpected to me,” she said. “I thought people would be crying, maybe. But the whole theater erupted into cheering at that moment.”

She also mentioned that an alternate audio version included more disturbing sound effects, which were later removed during editing to avoid an NC-17 rating.

“They took that out when they edited it to not be NC-17, but it was brutal,” she said.

Lawless also spoke about the ending of the film, where her character’s body appears in a disturbing scene involving another character trying to imitate her. She said that part was always in the script and was designed to show the theme of obsession and identity loss.

The film, directed by Curry Barker, follows a young man who uses a supernatural object to force love, leading to dark consequences. It also stars Michael Johnston and Inde Navarrette, along with supporting cast members.

Released in 2026 by Focus Features after its 2025 festival premiere, Obsession has drawn attention for its mix of horror and psychological themes, along with its strong audience reaction and box office success.

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