Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
Caitriona Balfe wishes that Outlander had introduced intimacy coordinators earlier.
The 46-year-old star plays Claire Fraser in the historical fantasy series – which is currently airing its eighth and final season – and admits that she and co-stars Sam Heughan and Tobias Menzies would have preferred steamy scenes on the Starz show to have been coordinated from the start of its run.
Caitriona told Bustle: “We were in the early days, which was like the Wild West. I wish we’d had (them).
“I think we learned along the way some of the pitfalls. I was so lucky that both Sam and Tobias… that we were all such good friends and really were able to look out for each other.”
The Irish actress continued: “(In) the beginning, yeah, it was – not always knowing what was being filmed, how it was being filmed, and then later on, you’re just watching screenshots and memes, and you’re like, ‘Oh my God, my poor parents.’ And you learn the hard way, maybe, how to protect yourself a bit more.”
Balfe explained that she and her cast-mates felt trepidation about the amount of risqué scenes that were included in the script when the series started back in 2014.
The Belfast star said: “We were very nervous about the amount of sex scenes.
“I had never done anything like that, I don’t think Sam had, I know Tobias hadn’t. And so it was very new territory for all of us, but (showrunner) Ron (Moore) was like, ‘I really want these to be part of the storytelling.’ And that was our directive in the beginning.
“As it went on, it got harder to maintain that directive because, if you become known for something, then people have an expectation and an appetite for it.
“What we were really trying to do is like, ‘Look, we’re going to show you a beautiful, intimate relationship, but it’s not always going to be about sex.'”
She continued: “And there’s pressures – they come from the studio, or they come from the audience – and you’re an actor, you’re a human being. It’s not (the) first thing that I want to do is take my clothes off.”
However, Caitriona credits the bond she has forged with Sam for helping the pair handle the raunchy sequences.
She said: “I feel like I had the most amazing work partner in Sam, and he and I are such good friends, and we always had each other’s backs.
“It was very important for us that [the sex scenes] didn’t become gratuitous and that it wasn’t just about sort of feeding an audience what they think they want, but more what’s going to move them.”
