Penn Badgley spilled on all those self-love scenes in hit Netflix series “You” during a recent episode of his podcast, “Podcrushed.” Badgley, who plays Joe Goldberg, a serial killer stalker with a heart of gold (kind of), detailed the notes he would get from director Lee Toland Krieger between takes. And without an intimacy coordinator for the masturbation scenes, Badgley had to figure out the best way to wank off. “Every time I’ve done a masturbation scene…I’ve always gotten the note to make it less creepy,” Badgley explained. “They say like, ‘Close your eyes or go faster or go slower.’ I’m like, ‘What? This man is fucking murdering people, and he’s masturbating in the street. You’re saying I’m making it creepy? How is it I’m the one making it creepy?’” The “Gossip Girl” alum continued, “I just remember I wouldn’t close my eyes and the director came up to me,” Badgley recalled. “He was like ‘Buddy, I think you gotta close your eyes.’”
Badgley admitted that he at first tried to argue with Krieger, saying being creepy is “the fucking point” of the character. “That’s just the strange line that we’re always walking on our show,” Badgley explained. “Examining toxicity in sexual culture while also trying to be sexy.” Badgley shared that he finds filming masturbation scenes “harder” than sex scenes with an intimacy coordinator. “You read it. It’s actually kind of funny or it’s creepy but it serves the story,” he said. “And then you discover in front of a crew of people with a camera on your face, knowing that, in all likelihood, millions of people are going to see this, you’re simulating masturbation.” “You” co-star Tati Gabrielle, who plays love interest Marianne, previously told Glamour UK that she “developed a rhythm” with Badgley for love scenes. “Because I told him the first day that I came on set for our first scene, I was like, ‘Dude, I got to tell you, I’m so nervous. Never done this before,’” Gabrielle recalled. “He’s like, ‘Oh my God, no, it’s going to be fine. We’ll go through it.’ It ends up being like a dance. You choreograph it all.” Gabrielle added, “He said, ‘Just talk to me. Let me know if you feel weird about something, if you’re uncomfortable.’ He was just so helpful and a really, I think, great person to have as an introduction to that, because I felt very safe with him.” “You” Season 4 is currently filming in London. For all the details on what’s next for Marianne, Joe, and Joe’s right hand, click here. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
