StarzJust when we thought True Blood was the most naked show on television, we got a good look at Spartacus.
And we saw just about everything.
Still, the hunky and hottie stars make no apologies for their racy work…
"I think we get a lot of press about the sex and violence on the show and the sensationalism," Viva Bianca, who plays Ilithyia, told me at last night at the premiere of the series' second season at the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood. "But you know what—it's that kind of show!"
Even so, it's not always easy for the stars to strip down.
"I'm always so scared," Bianca said. "I'm often offered shots of vodka to get through it, but I'm too conservative of an actor to do that. So you just go through it beat by beat and it becomes very clinical and not very sexy."
"Luckily, we're working with a great group of people—both the crew and the actors," said Nick Tarabay, who plays Ashur. "They make it safe, and they make it easy. So after while, you're like, ‘Yeah, I've seen you naked—no big deal.'"
But they'll only go so far. Manu Bennett said he had to ask producers to edit a scene last season that he felt included too much camera time focused on his manhood. "We can only do so much," said Bennett, who plays Crixus.
Liam McIntyre, who has replaced the late Andy Whitfield as Spartacus for the second season, says filming is far from sexy. "I'm certainly colder than I've been on anything else I've ever done," he said. "If you're lucky and you know the right people, occasionally, they'll bring you a big wooly jacket or jumper to cover your half-naked body."