Sex scenes are never fun, says 'Bodyguard' and 'Rocketman' star Richard Madden

Richard Madden attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala celebrating the opening of the "Camp: Notes on Fashion" exhibition on Monday, May 6, 2019, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Richard Madden (Credit: Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

Filming sex scenes is 'never fun', Game of Thrones and Bodyguard star Richard Madden has said.

The Scottish actor has hit headlines over scenes set to appear in forthcoming Elton John movie Rocketman, in which he plays the singer's former manager John Reid.

Reid and John embarked on an affair and became lovers, the singer's first relationship with a man, after which Reid became John's manager.

Read more: Taron Egerton moved in with Elton John to prep for Rocketman

Their budding relationship is shown in scenes between Madden and Taron Egerton, who plays the young Elton in the film.

Speaking to The Sun, Madden said: “Sex scenes are never fun to shoot but I only ever do these things if there’s a real justification for them.

“This is the first time Elton ever had sex with anyone so that’s why it’s a relevant scene, in terms of his progression.

“It’s as true to fact as we could be with where it happened, how it happened and when it happened.”

Taron Egerton and Richard Madden as Elton John and John Reid (Credit: Paramount)
Taron Egerton and Richard Madden as Elton John and John Reid (Credit: Paramount)

Egerton has also spoken about the scenes with Madden, telling Attitude magazine: “The rawness of that experience, the fear of that experience, but also the joy of the experience of Elton’s first kiss… it’s electric, it’s exciting, your stomach is doing somersaults.

“We didn't want to play like they were a couple who were eventually going to fall apart, we wanted to play it like two guys in their early 20s who are falling in love and who are incredibly sexually attracted to each other.”

Read more: Taron Egerton calls sex scene controversy ‘Nonsense’

Reid would go on to manage John until the late 90s, and also managed Queen between 1975 and 1978.

Dexter Fletcher has directed the movie, which is described as 'musical fantasy' re-telling of John's life story, which also stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Stephen Graham, and Jamie Bell.

It's out across the UK on May 22.