Rachel McAdams wanted to put her sex scene with Rachel Weisz "at the heart" of ‘Disobedience’.
The two actresses star as Orthodox Jewish women who rekindle their teenage affair in the drama and though the women and director Sebastián Lelio initially avoided discussing the six-minute intimate scene, the 39-year-old star eventually spoke up to stress how important she felt the footage was.
She said: "We had been speaking about everything except that scene, so I gathered my strength and said, ‘OK, I think we should start talking about the sex scene.’
"I explained that, for me, it was the heart of the film.
"It had to be long, we had to find specific acts for them to do because the real force of the scene would come out of that hyper-specificity of bold moments that avoided being exploitative and make it unique."
McAdams had a "wonderful time" working with Weisz and had always wanted to team up with her for a new project.
She told Psychologies magazine: "We had a wonderful time working together. I’ve been a fan of hers for a long time, but we never had the chance to work together properly before.
"I was so happy to finally get to know her and have this opportunity.
"What I appreciated about her was her effortless way of working, even though there’s always so much going on behind her eyes.
"I tried to be present as I could during each scene and just follow her lead."
And the two women relied on one another for support and advice during filming.
She added: "Even though the director was very supportive and sensitive the whole time, Rachel and I tried to take care of each other and that helped us while we were filming."
Rachel McAdams recalls her sex scene with Rachel Weisz
