‘Westworld’ Star Thandie Newton Said She ‘Went Full 1970s’ During Her Nude Scene
Fans of the hit HBO show Westworld already know that there’s more than enough nudity to go around, but they’ll be getting an extra-special surprise with Thandie Newton’s nude scenes.
Newton, who plays Maeve on the hit show, said that she opted to go “full 1970s” for her “down there” parts because she was committed to realism.
She told the Graham Norton Show (via the Daily Mail) that Westworld — like other productions — provides merkins (which are, um, very special wigs) so that if anything is altered, they can look more realistic for the role. Newton said that she was “very realistic” down there, so she didn’t need a wig of any kind.
Newton added that, because the events of Westworld take place in a “wide-open prairie,” what she has worked just fine since there wasn’t “plucking, shaving, and waxing” back then.
She also said that there was a more practical reason for her avoiding the merkin: because it cut into her precious family time. Newton, who has a 2-year-old daughter, said that merkins take more than an hour to glue on — and another hour to take off — and she “wanted to go home and spend time with her daughter.”
The other guests of the Graham Norton Show also had their fair share to say about the merkin controversy.
Chris Pratt, who will be starring in the upcoming Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, said that he “fully supported” the Westworld star’s decision to go au naturel, before fist-bumping her and congratulating her for being so brave.
Check out the new #Val action figure – SO PROUD! @StarWarsMovies #HanSolo See the human flesh version in cinemas now ? Happy Bank Holiday weekend x T pic.twitter.com/IJW7h1QINU
— Thandiwe Newton (@ThandiweNewton) May 26, 2018
However, he also cautioned to add that a show’s rating changes depending on whether a woman goes “full 1970s” or shaves her necessary parts.
Meanwhile, as the second season comes to a close, various fan theories abound about the show. Even though the second season features less nudity than the first season — a fact that the show’s producers said has to do with the fact that they wanted to focus more on the story and less on the shock value — the show is more focused on making references to both life after death and immortality.
Thanks @thismorning @StarWarsMovies #HanSolo and lovely to see divine food maestro @jamieoliver again x T pic.twitter.com/Mb5NQn2gXa
— Thandiwe Newton (@ThandiweNewton) May 23, 2018
What’s more, according to Slate, Maeve’s character, in particular, is an interesting one because we don’t know if she’s a human or a host — yet — but there’s one thing that keeps her motivated above all else: the love she has for her daughter, even if the daughter she knows doesn’t exist anymore.
A new episode of Westworld airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. EST on HBO.
