Bridgerton uses key strategies from Grey’s Anatomy sex scenes. Both series come from Shonda Rhimes’ production company Shondaland. However, Grey’s Anatomy is set in the present day in a Seattle hospital, and Bridgerton is set in the past during London’s regency era.
When it came to pulling the audiences in and getting the intimacy on the show just right, there are certain things that the creators have learned and implemented in both series to give the audience precisely what they want.
‘Bridgerton’ is a sexy show
Because the 19th-century set series is about love and relationships, it can get highly streamy; in the first season, fans watched the slow burn between Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynover) and Simon Basset, the Duke of Hastings (Regé-Jean Page). The pair began their relationship as friends, but their attraction to one another was so sizzling that they eventually gave in to their desire to be together which led to their shot-gun-like union.
In the second season, Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) initially denied their mutual attraction. Instead, they leaned into their hatred for one another before it became too much to ignore.
Since it often takes a while for couples to lean into their attraction, all the build-ups make for a highly sexy show.
‘Bridgerton’ borrows strategies from ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ sex scenes
When it comes to getting the sex scenes just right, Rhimes and her team have used some of the same strategies they developed for their long-running hit show, Grey’s Anatomy. Julie Anne Robinson, who has directed episodes of Grey’s and some especially spicy Bridgerton episodes, spoke about the strategy. She explained that Cristina (Sandra Oh) and Owen’s (Kevin McKidd) storylines on Grey’s were a huge inspiration for Bridgerton.
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Robinson revealed that both series lean into an older form of romance, which means love and affection ois often touchless and wordless, which makes it more intense. “I learned this from Grey’s Anatomy: To light the men as beautifully as the women,” Robinson told Refinery29. “To be really careful about how you shoot people. That was something I was aware of while I was shooting Bridgerton.”
It was also important that there were no gratuitous sex scenes.
‘Bridgerton’ intimacy coordinators are a significant part of the show
When it comes to making sure the actors are safe while engaging in sex scenes, intimacy coordinators are an essential part of the show.
“I knew exactly when Regé was gonna touch me and where and for how long, and he knew the same with me,” Dynevor told Elle. “It was all very choreographed. It made the scenes almost better for it because we both felt safe and secure in what we were doing, and that’s when we could go for it.”
Rhimes and the series creator Chris Van Dusen also wanted to be sure that these scenes moved the story forward and that served a larger purpose. They are also precise to the characters, so season 1 differs from season 2.
