Lots of things can be awkward the first time. Take the sex scenes between Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson in Fifty Shades of Grey, for example. Luckily for people hyped about the sequel, Fifty Shades Darker, Johnson found an easy fix for awkward: whiskey.
Johnson and Dornan developed a “pre-game ritual” before filming the sex scenes, Johnson told Entertainment Tonight. Johnson’s go-to was a “shot of whiskey (and) mints,” while Dornan stuck to something a little more physical.
“He does pushups and I just lay there and drink whiskey,” Johnson told ET.
It’s not as romantic as using wine in the bedroom (or as useful as red wine), but perhaps the extra kick is just what Johnson needed. It was difficult for the two actors to act naturally steamy in the first movie. Part of that’s because they had only known each other for five weeks before filming, but a large part might also be that Johnson just hadn’t discovered her whiskey fix yet.
Familiarity, time, and whiskey can make everything a little easier (even acting out BDSM scenes for a movie). Those three factors helped the scenes come about more naturally. Or, as Johnson put it to ET, acting out the scenes in Fifty Shades Darker “definitely was not as petrifying as the first time.”
If you’re looking for something to drink while enjoying the film version of America’s favorite bodice ripper, try following Johnson’s example. Drink whiskey.