It must be pretty strange to shoot any sex scene in a movie, but when Joaquin Phoenix had to perform one for the science fiction movie Her, he ended up leaving the set and needing a break.
Her is a brilliant film, combining futuristic technology with romance movie tropes to deliver a heart-wrenching tale of unrequited love. Phoenix plays the lead role of Theodore, while MCU star Scarlett Johansson offers her vocal talents to the AI character of Samantha, whom Theodore falls in love with.
Appearing on Dax Shepherd’s Armchair Expert podcast, Johansson revealed the recording of her orgasm for the drama movie proved to be too intense for Phoenix to handle.
Samantha and Theodore essentially engage in phone sex in the movie, and Johansson said: “We tried to get through one take, and he was, like, losing it. He left the studio. He needed a break.”
“You don’t want to hear your voice ever. You definitely don’t want to hear what you sound like having an orgasm. You definitely don’t want to hear what you sound like having a fake orgasm — ew. It’s so gross. It was so bizarre,” she added.
So, while these actors may be more than comfortable with causing chaos in the superhero movie world, the idea of faking phone sex was too much. We can’t blame them; we imagine that whole situation is incredibly awkward.
If you want more from Phoenix, check out our guide to the Joker 2 release date. Or, take a look at our list of the best MCU characters to see if Johansson’s Black Widow makes the cut.