Kristin Davis has claimed she was pressured into a topless scene while filming Sex and the City.
From 1998 until 2004, the actress played Charlotte York in the HBO romantic comedy, starring alongside Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall and Cynthia Nixon.
She later reprised the role in the 2008 movie Sex and the City, its sequel Sex and the City 2 in 2010 and in the revival of the show And Just Like That…, which launched in 2021.
However, the 60-year-old actress has now spoken about a particularly uncomfortable experience on the set of the original series.
Recalling filming a scene during season 5 where she ‘flashed my boob’, Kristin accused showrunner Michael Patrick King, now 70, of not giving her a choice in the matter.
‘I didn’t want to do it. Michael Patrick forced me to do it. And he kept telling me like “it’ll be fine, it’ll be great”’ she said on the latest episode of her Are You A Charlotte? podcast.
‘And it is. But we were in a restaurant. There were people everywhere.’
Speaking with Jenny Bicks, a writer on the show, Kristin admitted the story was ‘not going to sound good’ when the episode was released.
However, she added her former boss ‘knows’ about her feelings.
She added: ‘I do think the other thing, and Michael always talks about this a lot too, is that we always wanted the sex to be like, “oh we are shooting a soft porn”. The tone was important.’
In the episode the actress also spoke about her first completely nude scene the following season when Charlotte converts to Judaism and steps into a mikveh bath.
Reflecting on that moment she explained: ‘It was a very, very integral part of the storyline. Because it wasn’t sexual – it’s much easier to have some nudity in a non-sexual way in a spiritual way.’
However, she said the filming environment was uncomfortable after having to walk through a room full of men smoking cigars.
‘I was like, “Uh, I’m trying to do something here without feeling self-conscious. Could you possibly move all those guys?” It’s crazy back then what went on,’ she shared.
‘Even in a situation where you theoretically did have so much power, all that stuff was still able to happen and you had to be the bad guy and be like, “They can’t smoke cigars literally in my eye line”.’
However, she said the mikveh scene was ‘gorgeous, romantic perfection’ and she was glad she’d done it.
Earlier this year Kristin, who has also appeared in Melrose Place, told People she was ‘scared’ of showing sex on the show and didn’t think all of the intimate scenes were needed.
‘I did not feel protected. I had to hide in my dressing room at the end of the scenario. I had to hide in my dressing room and call my manager in L.A, at two in the morning,’ she admitted.
Metro has contacted representatives for Michael Patrick King for comment.
Sex and the City is streaming on Now.
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