David Tennant Gets Real About Filming Sex Scenes In His Racy New Drama Rivals

David Tennant has opened up about the reality of shooting the sex scenes in his new show Rivals.

The Doctor Who star joins an all-star cast including Aidan Turner, Alex Hassell, Danny Dyer and Katherine Parkinson in the new drama, adapted from Jilly Cooper’s hit book of the same name.

Much has already been made in the press of the show’s racy content, with David admitting that the show’s sex scenes were not something he looked “forward to” filming.

“I don’t have to do nudity as much as [Alex Hassell], but everyone has a bit,” he told Radio Times.

“Part of the story is about how people manage their sexuality – for good, for ill, in positive ways, in negative ways. That’s part of what Jilly wrote, and that’s the story that we decided to tell, and I think it’s important that you meet that and you don’t shy away from it.”

He added: “Part of your job as an actor, I suppose, is to get over yourself, because you’re trying to tell... you’re trying to let people into the intimate lives of these characters and what that reveals about them.

“So, I mean, all the scenes are there, they all inform the characters, inform the story, so you have to focus on that side of it, the storytelling aspect, and get over yourself.”

He also praised the “safeguards” put in place by the production crew, as well as his co-stars, who “were all out to look out for each other, care for each other and make sure everyone was feeling comfortable and safe and had what they needed to tell the story without feeling like they were compromising themselves in any way”.

Showrunner Dominic Treadwell-Collins (who previously worked as the executive producer of EastEnders during Danny Dyer’s peak time on the soap) previously told The Times of what viewers should expect from Rivals: “We’ve been equal opportunities in our nudity. There’s a willy for every pair of tits.”

Shooting some of the outdoor intimate scenes wasn’t without its problems, though, as he revealed: “It was at the height of tick season. Not safe to be in the grass. We didn’t want to get a tick on Danny Dyer’s willy!

“In the end, we had to get in a load of moss for them to lie on. It’s the first time, to my knowledge, that safe sex has involved moss.”

Rivals arrives on Disney+ on 18 October.