Richard Armitage Lifts The Lid On The Outrageous Obsession Scene That's Got Everyone Talking

"It came almost out of an improvisation," the Netflix star has claimed.
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Richard Armitage in Obsession's most talked-about scene
Netflix

Obsession star Richard Armitage has revealed that the show’s most talked-about scene was actually supposed to play out very differently.

The British actor has sparked plenty of conversation with his role in the four-part Netflix series, which centres around a man who begins a passionate affair with his son’s partner.

In one of Obsession’s most outrageous scenes, Richard’s character is seen making his way into a hotel room where his secret lover had spent the night, before seeking out on her scent on the bedding and performing a solo sex act while sniffing some pillows.

And if that sounds like a lot… that’s because it is.

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It turns out *that* Obsession scene came out of something of an "improvisation"
Netflix

Speaking to the Express, Richard admitted that this scene was born out of “improvisation”, as it was originally written with a fairly different outcome.

It came almost out of an improvisation I would say, because in the script, it involved a Kleenex with some lipstick of Anna’s,” he said.

“We were trying to work out how to physicalise the top of William’s obsession with something he was losing.”

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Richard Armitage
Carlos Alvarez via Getty Images

He added: “Something that was so thoughtful and profound which triggered the entire scene was that [co-star Charlie Murphy] had been wearing a scent throughout the whole shoot and she left it in the hotel room but I didn’t know that until the cameras were rolling.

“This scene unfolded and it’s quite special to have that freedom.”

Obsession has quickly become renowned for its rather graphic sex scenes, with Charlie Murphy admitting recently that filming these came at a bit of a cost for both herself and Richard.