‘Splitsville’ Star Dakota Johnson Says She Never Needs a Pep Talk Before Filming a Sex Scene, and Her Reason Why Is Priceless
Dakota Johnson has spent years navigating the particular challenge of being one of Hollywood’s most recognizable faces for intimate on-screen work, ever since her breakout role as Anastasia Steele in the ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ franchise. That history has made her a natural go-to voice whenever the conversation turns to what actually happens behind the scenes of a sex scene.
While promoting her romantic comedy ‘Materialists’, Johnson sat down with Amy Poehler for an episode of the ‘Good Hang’ podcast, where the conversation eventually turned toward the mechanics of shooting intimate scenes. What started as a fairly standard question quickly turned into one of the more memorable exchanges of the actress’s press run.
When Poehler asked how she typically psychs herself up before filming a sex scene, Johnson did not hesitate. Speaking on ‘Good Hang with Amy Poehler’, she replied that she simply does not have to, joking that she considers herself always psyched up for sex in general, a response that sent Poehler into laughter almost immediately.
The bit continued from there, with Johnson doubling down on the joke by suggesting her go to phrase for getting into the right headspace is inviting everyone to, in her words, go to pound town. The exchange quickly went viral once clips of the interview started circulating, with fans praising Johnson’s willingness to be candid and unfiltered about a topic actors are often expected to discuss with far more reserve.
Once the joking settled down, Johnson pivoted into a more genuine reflection on what filming these scenes is actually like. She explained that a recent project marked the first time she had ever worked with an intimacy coordinator on set, describing the experience as something that made the entire process feel far more comfortable than she was used to.
Johnson was also blunt about how unglamorous these scenes tend to be in practice, noting that despite how they might look on screen, filming a sex scene is not actually sexy and does not feel good in the way audiences might assume. That kind of honesty has become something of a signature for Johnson, who has built a reputation for pulling back the curtain on the less romanticized realities of her job.
Beyond the humor, Johnson explained that her comfort with these scenes comes down to preparation rooted in character work rather than personal ease alone. She said her approach always starts with understanding who the character is meant to be to the audience, whether that means playing someone confident and idolized or someone more reserved and guarded, since that context shapes how she approaches the physicality of the scene itself.
Do you like when actors openly discuss what happens behind the scenes of intimate scenes?
Johnson also credited her mother, actress Melanie Griffith, with shaping her overall comfort in her own body, explaining that being raised with pride in her physical self has carried over directly into how she handles vulnerable moments in her work. That foundation, paired with her trademark humor, has made her one of the more consistently candid voices in Hollywood on a subject many actors still tend to avoid discussing in detail.
Would you want to see more actors speak this openly about what filming intimate scenes is really like, and did Dakota Johnson’s answer make you laugh as much as it made Amy Poehler. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
