Sex scenes in Hollywood have decreased by 40 percent

A new survey shows that the number of sex scenes has decreased by 40 percent since the turn of the millennium, which The Guardian reported on. The survey was based on the 250 highest-grossing films each year from 2000 to 2023.

The reasons for this are, among other things, that the young audience prefers films without or with toned-down sex scenes. In addition, the film companies know that sex scenes lead to a higher age limit and limit the reach of the film.

Intimate scenes carry risks

Malin B Eriksson works as an intimacy coordinator, a profession that may also have contributed to the reduction of the scenes

– It’s easiest to explain roughly as a stunt coordinator. We work to ensure that it is done in an artistic way and that the scene is part of the story and moves the story forward, and at the same time we work from a risk perspective, says Eriksson.

She is the first in Sweden to have this job and has, among other things, worked on the filming of the series Young Royals, Ondskan and Snabba cash coordinating intimate scenes.

The profession is needed to prevent the risks that intimate scenes carry with them, says Malin B Eriksson.

– Unlike stunt scenes, which may be violent or have high heights where you jump from ten meters, there you know what can happen. We don’t really know what can happen inside the body when working with intimacy. It is much more individual and therefore needs to be handled in a different way, she says.

The scoop: It’s happened with the action movies

One who works both with writing and editing sex scenes is the screenwriter and television critic Ida Kjellin, who believes that it is nice to avoid the action films from the 80s and 90s with casual sex scenes.

While the proportion of sexual content in romantic films has only decreased by just under 20 percent, the decrease has been even greater in thrillers and action films, where the decrease has been 50 and 70 percent, respectively.

– I have done a little scouting. What has happened with the action movies is that Marvel has arrived. The superhero films have taken over all action films. They are family films with a lot of violence, but no blood, and love, but no sex. For the last 20 years they have dominated.

Challengers, Saltburn and Poor things are several examples of new hit films that go against this trend. Instead, sex is a big part of the plot.

– It has become an almost viral meme, but it drives the plot forward. If you want to depict a sex scene, there must be something in the sex scene that develops the character or drives the plot forward, says Ida Kjellin.