Why 'Anora' Star Mikey Madison Said No To Intimacy Coordinators

Mikey Madison in "Anora.'

Anora star Mikey Madison is explaining why she turned down the use of intimacy coordinators for her explicit nudity and sex scenes in the critically acclaimed comedy.

Madison stars as the title character in Anora, a Brooklyn sex worker who finds herself in a complicated situation when she meets and quickly marries Ivan (Mark Eydelshteyn), the son of a Russian oligarch. Ivan’s parents aren’t happy about quick nuptials, however, and jet from Russia to New York City to get the marriage annulled.

Anora is written and directed by The Florida Project filmmaker Sean Baker.

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While the use of intimacy coordinators has become common practice in Hollywood in the past few years, Madison told Pamela Anderson during an Actors on Actors video conversation for Variety that she refused the offer to have one present for her intimate sequences in Anora.

“For our film, it was a choice that I made; the filmmakers offered me, if I wanted, an intimacy coordinator. Mark Eydelshteyn, who plays Ivan, and I decided it would be best to just keep it small,” Madison told Anderson. “My character is a sex worker, and I had seen Sean’s films and know his dedication to authenticity. I was ready for it. As an actress, I approached it as a job.”

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Per the SAG-AFTRA, an intimacy coordinator is “an advocate, a liaison between actors and production … in regard to nudity and simulated sex and other intimate and hyper-exposed scenes.”

Variety’s Actors on Actors video segments generally highlight performers who are in the awards conversation in both film and television. For the current awards season, Anora’s Madison was paired with Anderson, who is starring in the upcoming drama The Last Showgirl.

The winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes International Film Festival in May, Anora has already emerged as an awards season favorite.

In addition to the film’s Best Picture nomination and a Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy nod from the Critics Choice Association and Golden Globes, respectively, Madison is up for Best Female Actor awards from both organizations.

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Madison has also already won Best Female Actor honors from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the Toronto Film Critics Association, the Phoenix Film Critics Association, the Washington Film Critics Association and the Atlanta Film Critics Circle.

Anora also earned a stellar 96% “fresh” rating from Rotten Tomatoes critics based on 284 reviews. The RT Critics Consensus reads, “Another marvelous chronicle of America's strivers by writer-director Sean Baker given some extra pizzazz by Mikey Madison's brassy performance, Anora is a romantic drama on the bleeding edge.”

Anora is playing in theaters and debuted on PVOD on Tuesday.

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