Dakota Johnson sets the record straight on what it’s really like filming intimate scenes

How does Dakota Johnson prepare for intimate scenes on set? The actress is opening up about her approach to filming them and debunking a common misconception.

The actress, 37, who starred in Fifty Shades of Grey, has revealed the truth about filming steamy scenes and as it turns out, there’s a lot of movie magic involved to make them come to life on the big screen.

While speaking to Amy Poehler on her Good Hang podcast during the press tour for her movie Materialists, Johnson was asked how she prepares to intimate scenes.

“I don’t have to. I’m, like, always psyched up for sex,” she jokingly said.

She shared more tidbits and explained what it feels like working with an intimacy coordinator.

“I recently did a movie a few months ago, and we had an intimacy coordinator on set, and it was the first time I’ve ever worked with one. And she was really great. It was so cool.”

Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan starred in Fifty Shades of Grey (Universal Pictures)

This may come as a huge surprise to moviegoers, but the Verity star explained that filming intimate scenes is not nearly as glamorous as the finished product looks. She said they are ‘not sexy’ and ‘doesn’t feel good’.

To prepare for these scenes, Johnson deciphers the background of her character. “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 idolised hot girl? Is she a housewife? Is she lonely? Is she scared? Is she conservative? So that's obviously character work.”

The star explained that filming intimate scenes also involves ‘certain prep’ to get ready for the physical demands, 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, also credited her mother with helping her feel comfortable in her own skin and encouraging open conversations about sex, which she said has been particularly valuable when filming such vulnerable scenes.

The actress most recently appeared in the Colleen Hoover adaptation Verity (TheStewartofNY/Getty Images)

“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.”

The actress explained that her mother’s openness about topics often considered private helped her grow up feeling comfortable discussing her body and sexuality, allowing her to approach such subjects with confidence rather than embarrassment.

“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.”

Johnson most recently stars in Verity, an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling psychological thriller, alongside Anne Hathaway and Josh Hartnett, which has received mixed reviews from critics.