Dakota Johnson Says She Doesn’t Have to Prepare to Film Sex Scenes

Dakota Johnson has an open attitude when it comes to filming sex scenes.

The actress, 35, said she’s “always psyched” to shoot intimate scenes as she discussed her experiences with them on the Tuesday, June 10 episode of the Good Hang podcast, while promoting her new movie Materialists. 

When asked by host Amy Poehler how she prepares for sex scenes, Johnson jokingly responded, “I don’t have to. I’m, like, always psyched up for sex.”

The actress continued: “I recently did a movie a few months ago, and we had an intimacy coordinator on set and it was the time I’ve ever worked with one. And she was really great. It was so cool. because I’m so used to just you know, like… It’s a sex scene. It’s not sexy; it doesn’t feel good.”

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Johnson shared on the podcast that she prepares for sex scenes by figuring out the background of the character she’s playing at the time.

“First, it depends on who the character is and who the character’s supposed to be to the audience,” she said. “Is she like a super idolized hot girl? Is she a housewife? Is she lonely? Is she scared? Is she conservative? So that’s obviously character work.”

The Fifty Shades of Grey star explained that there’s also “certain prep” that goes into the physicality of the scene, adding, “I want to feel good in my body if I’m showing my body.”

Johnson, whose parents are actors Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, said she credits her mom for encouraging her to feel comfortable in her skin and to talk about sex, which has helped significantly in shooting such vulnerable scenes.

“My mom raised me to be really proud of my body and love my body,” the actress shared on the podcast. “So I’ve always felt so grateful for that, especially in my work because I can use it and it feels like real.’

“It was the way she spoke about it with me … she was very honest and open about body stuff,  like getting my period,” Johnson recalled. “She also talked to me about sex and how precious and important it is. So I guess in my work, it’s something that I feel brave with and that I feel, when it’s used the right way in a story, it’s important.”