Allison Williams details Lena Dunham acting out ‘Girls’ ass-eating scene

Allison Williams is looking back on her salad days.

Reflecting on her days working on the Emmy-winning HBO series, Girls, Williams noted how the show operated in a time before intimacy coordinators became more commonplace on set in the aftermath of #MeToo.

“We had so many sex scenes to prep and work through,” Williams said during an appearance on the Not Skinny but Not Fat podcast with host Amanda Hirsch. “It would have been so helpful to have someone who’s department head of sex scenes.” 

Instead of having a dedicated coordinator to guide actors through the show’s many racy scenes, Williams relied on creator Lena Dunham and co-showrunner Jenni Konner to choreograph how scenes would play out before they filmed.

While it was helpful to get a direct description of how the writers envisioned their scenes coming to life, it also left some very visual memories for Williams and her costars. The actor recalled a specific instance of Dunham and Konner crafting the infamous scene from 2015’s fourth season, in which Marnie (Williams) is the recipient of an “ass-motorboat” from her musical partner and star-crossed beau, Desi (future The Bear star Ebon Moss-Bachrach).

“I have this picture of Lena and Jenni acting out the moment where Desi was going down on me — eating my ass,” Williams recalled. “I have a picture of them where I think it’s Jenni is leaning over a windowsill and Lena is leaning behind her like smiling being like, ‘This is what we picture,’ And I was like, ‘Great!’ but they were busy. That should have been someone else’s job.” 

Airing between 2012 and 2017, the Girls was known for its racy and outrageous scenes as it followed four women in their 20s making their way in New York City. The series focused on their romances, hookups, friendships, and careers. In addition to Williams, the cast included Jemima Kirke (Jessa), Zosia Mamet (Shoshanna), and Dunham as Hannah.

When the scene aired in January 2015, Williams told Vulture that she’d approached the job practically.

“Because of my wiring, I read it in the script and I went into total action mode. I got everyone together and I was like, ‘All right, ‘Grace [in wardrobe], you and me — we’re going to come up with something so ingenious that he is going to feel comfortable.’ I mean, think about where he is, right!” she said.

“It was our first day back of shooting and it was my birthday — everything was happening,” Williams continued. “I grabbed the makeup girl and said, ‘I want to smell like a cake,’ so we put vanilla cream everywhere so everything smells good. And then I’m like, ‘Grace, we’re going to rig something invisible from the side but that feels like a pillow when he puts his face into it.’ And, that’s what we did! You wouldn’t know; it’s total TV magic.”

Still, the M3GAN star admitted that having an intimacy coordinator would have been a boon throughout the six-season run.  Dunham echoed her sentiments in a 2022 interview with Metro.co.uk ahead of the release of her film Catherine Called Birdy.

“I know as an actor sometimes you feel anxious going to the director with a concern, even if you really like them, you just don’t want to be the party pooper – you just have your own self-consciousness,” Dunham said at the time. “And to have a person there who is devoted to that dialogue and your comfort, I mean, I would have loved to have it on Girls.”

She continued of her experience leading the HBO series, “When you’re the director and the actor at the same time, and the writer, you’re trying to hit all those marks, and also make sure everyone has what they need, it’s just too much for one person. I’m just so happy that we’re reaching a time where sets in general are a more carefully monitored thing.”

Sign up for Entertainment Weekly‘s free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.

M3GAN 2.0 arrives in theaters June 27.