‘Deep Water’ Director Adrian Lyne Admits That, Yes, He Totally Acts Like A ‘Cheerleader’ While Filming Sex Scenes

(SPOILERS for Deep Water will be found below.)

Deep Water is shamelessly sleazy, not to mention gloriously dirty, in addition to being the movie where Ben Affleck gets cucked in what feels like the debauchery-filled cousin to Gone Girl. Oh, and it’s the triumphant return of Adrian Lyne, who’s directing his first feature since 2002’s Unfaithful. Ben Affleck could be the new Michael Douglas (to reference Lyne’s Fatal Attraction), or even the new Robert Redford (alright, I took this train too far while referencing Indecent Proposal, but that’s a nice way to glide into discussing Lyne’s new interview with The Independent).

Within the piece, Lyne responds to an inquiry about Demi Moore’s 2019 memoir, in which she explained (via IndieWire) that Lyne was incredibly vocal while she filmed a sex scene with Woody Harrelson. In Moore’s words, he was “practically hollering” during the entire affair and shouting, “F***ing raunchy!” as well as “Oh god, got a boner on that!” Moore went on to write about how this method, after getting “used to it,” allowed Moore to forget about “my own awkwardness.” And when The Independent mentioned this all to Lyne, he blushed but explained how his “cheerleader” ways helped his actors flow:

“Yesss,” he replies, timidly. “But I’ve always thought there’s something awful about actors going at it in total silence. Or very glumly, and then wondering whether their arse looks good, or if their thighs are sagging. So I always act as a kind of cheerleader. Sometimes I’ll go, ‘It’s good! It’s good!'” He claps his hands together, like an enthusiastic judge at the sex Olympics. “You sense their confidence mounting, so it’s a better scene. I do that a lot.”

Lord. I may never be able to stop thinking about Lyne jumping up and down while Anna de Armas exclaims (to Ben Affleck), “Would you kiss my ass” as (at least to me) Affleck’s character doesn’t seem to be genuinely enthused at all. He’s more into the snails, man. Because those snails would never (intentionally) let him down.