Rivals star Emily Ataka has revealed her negative experiences on TV and film sets as she praises the use of intimacy coordinators.
The 35-year-old star recently starred in the sexy ’80s rival on Disney Plus, which had a coordinator on set—a trained professional who can guide co-stars through intimate scenes—but that hasn’t always been the case.
She told The Sun : “I’ve seen people roll their eyes at them and say, ‘I don’t need one.'”
“There is a defense for this because they feel like they are being accused of something they haven’t done yet.
“Intimacy coordinators are there to support you if you feel uncomfortable, whether you are a man or a woman.”
The single mother’s career gained momentum after she starred as Charlotte in Mediation, before going on to appear in outside stakes and action films such as Lies We Tell and Lucky.
As she continued, “I have been sexually assaulted at work throughout my career, whether it’s on the actual set or at a wrap party.
“And since the #MeToo movement, it shows that people are listening and that there needs to be a change in behavior on the sets.”
In Rivals, Atack stars as Sarah Stratton, the second wife and former mistress of Paul Stratton, who carries on an affair when she takes a chance on his power.
One memorable scene that opens the show saw her playing naked tennis with Alex Hassell’s character Rupert, in which her character covers himself with a racket and balls.
After the show aired, however, the comedian returned to the “sexually aggressive” comments coming her way.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, she admitted that she “knew something like this would happen, just not so quickly.”
She added: “I can’t control people’s sexually aggressive behavior, but I can continue to campaign and fight for women’s freedom.
“I should be able to do a scene like that and not get negative attention. The two shouldn’t go hand in hand.”
Explaining what she was going through online, she recalled one woman on Instagram who told her, “‘Pick a lane. You can’t play a role like that and take your clothes off and expect not to get messages. Why would you take that role?’”
To which she replied, “I wanted to say to her, ‘Are you telling me to basically quit my job?’ Why should I?
“Women need to change their clothes; We need to change our routes at home. I’m a professional. I’m never going to please everyone,” she concluded.
The British actor, who got engaged to his partner Alistair Garner earlier this year, will reprise his role as Sarah in the second season of the hit series.
Speaking about the atmosphere on set, she told Radio Times: “I’m really proud of the Rivals gang because I’ve never felt so safe in my life and we all have so much respect for each other.
“We have to do a lot of sex scenes and we’re very closely watched – it’s a really positive thing.”
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