'I May Destroy You' intimacy coordinator says an actor used a body double for a simulated threesome

• Film and TV productions sometimes use body doubles to simulate nudity or sex for specific actors.
• An intimacy coordinator on "I May Destroy You" said one was used during a scene with a threesome.

HBO's "I May Destroy You" featured a memorable threesome — but fans may not know it took a little Hollywood magic for the scene to come together.

When actors aren't comfortable performing in nude or sex scenes, body doubles can step in for them in shots that don't show their faces, which was the case for Weruche Opia, who plays Terry on the series.

Insider spoke with Ita O'Brien, the intimacy coordinator for "I May Destroy You," who shared how Opia used a body double during the scene with the simulated threesome.

Using a body double for the scene meant the storyline could still happen

On episode three of "I May Destroy You," viewers learn that Terry had a threesome with two men in Italy.

The scene played an important role in Terry's character development, O'Brien said, but Opia wasn't comfortable acting in it.

"It's a really important storytelling because it's another really important aspect of the abuse and boundaries that that character experiences," O'Brien told Insider. "But for that actor, it was not suitable for her personally to perform that intimate content."

For certain shots of the scene, the show used a body double, who O'Brien said was very comfortable, open, and "completely within her boundaries" while performing the simulated threesome.

O'Brien said Opia was very involved in helping the body double portray her character

Before filming, the actors on "I May Destroy You" worked with the intimacy coordinator to create riders detailing levels of nudity and intimate content they're comfortable performing and showing on film. And those riders are still in place when it comes to body doubles taking on their characters.

Because of that, O'Brien said, Opia was also closely involved in the production process for the threesome scene.

"What the actor agrees to is what they are comfortable for their character to show nudity or simulated sex content-wise," O'Brien said. "They have some control if there's a body double doing that intimate content, that body double's choreography and the nudity will still pertain to what that actor has agreed to for that character to portray."

Increased intimacy coordination allows actors to be more open about their limits with certain content

The intimacy coordinator said that before her position was commonplace on sets, actors often feared that they wouldn't get certain parts if they were unwilling to do nudity or sex scenes.

But, O'Brien said, productions like "I May Destroy You" are helping to change that.

"Because of this production working really clearly and openly in integrating the guidelines into the whole of the production, they were able to have that conversation with that actor," O'Brien told Insider. "So right from the get-go, the production didn't have to compromise on their character's storyline, but neither did the actor have to be compromised."

Representatives for Opia didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.