‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’s virtual sex scene with Brandon Flynn and Tatiana Maslany lives up to the show’s title
The first two episodes of Apple TV‘s Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed premiered on May 20, and the dark comedic thriller wastes no time living up to its title.
In the cold open of Maximum Pleasure‘s pilot, less than five minutes into the 10-episode season, the show already delivers its first steamy sex scene. The series follows Paula (Tatiana Maslany), a newly divorced soccer mom whose attempt to seek pleasure and companionship online completely upends her life, threatens her safety, and puts her chances of gaining custody of her daughter at risk. So as you might imagine, the show’s first sex scene is virtual! Don’t think for a second that the distance between Paula and Trevor (Brandon Flynn), the sexy camboy she’s falling for, stops the two from forming electric chemistry though…
Episode 1, “Magnets,” kicks off with the two chatting via video call about Paula’s custody battle, new apartment, and frustrating ex (Jake Johnson). As she walks from the living room to the kitchen venting about her life, Trevor listens intently and repeatedly lifts her up. Swoon! Their rapport feels so natural and their emotional intimacy is so strong that you don’t even realize Paula’s paying for the call until Trevor breaks the unfortunate news: “We’ve only got like six minutes left, unless you want another hour?” When Paula asks if they can make six minutes work, Trevor confidently assures her, “six minutes is like a lifetime,” loses his shirt, and says, “Do you know how fast I can get you off?” HOT.
A flustered Paula giggles and kills the lights as Trevor removes his pants. Once she grabs her beer and picks a spot on the floor by her open fridge to sit back and enjoy the show, Trevor’s sexy, soothing voice coos, “I’m gonna make you feel so good, Paula. Cause you deserve it… You look fucking gorgeous. Are you ready for this?”
When Paula takes her shirt off and leans toward her laptop screen, Maximum Pleasure cuts back and forth between the two characters as they set out to pursue, well, their maximum pleasure! After setting the mood and getting viewers all hot and bothered before we’ve even reached the five-minute mark, the series thrusts to its colorful, techno-pounding opening credits sequence to keep the adrenaline pumping. Talk about getting off!
For Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed‘s premiere to hit so hard, the series had to find the perfect Trevor. Flynn’s piercing blue eyes, boyish good looks, and kind smile add to the allure — as do the sexy confidence and emotional intelligence the actor exudes. But to play a camboy as authentically as possible, Flynn did his research to enhance his performance.
“I talked to some friends who work as sex workers, whether virtually or like in dungeons. I was curious about the fantasy and the performance of fantasy. I think we have the larger scope of it, where you [understand] the fantasy of something so on the nose, but this is a little bit softer,” Flynn told DECIDER over Zoom. “Trevor’s an everyday man, which is also part of the fantasy. And what I think really helped is my objective throughout all my scenes with Tatiana really is, ‘How do I make her feel good?’ It’s really fun. All the choices become really positive. You flip her negative thinking and always see the brighter side. It’s very cheery and sexy. And that’s kind of a fun world to live in. I found that really delightful.”
Without spoiling anything major, a good portion of Trevor’s screen-time in the first two episodes takes place on another screen, be it Paula’s laptop or phone in a private session or camboy live stream. As a viewer, the show’s clever use of technology is especially captivating and offers unique vantage points that feel reflective real-life virtual connections. Creator David J. Rosen drew initial inspiration for the Apple TV series when the pandemic forced people to connect online, so he wanted to stay true to it and recapture those feelings. From an acting perspective, however, director David Gordon Green’s virtual vision presented an exciting challenge.
“Green established that anytime you saw Trevor doing his job, it would be through the webcam. And when I first heard that, I was like, ‘Oh, god. OK. That’ll be interesting.’ And it was,” Flynn told DECIDER when asked how he and Maslany developed their chemistry for those intimate online scenes.
“We worked on a sound stage. So essentially, Tatiana would have this box on one part of the stage that was her apartment. And I’d have my box, which was my apartment. And by the grace of all the technicians involved, we would somehow really be web-camming. It came with plenty of mic interferences and connection issues. And some really worked and were delightful to engage with and keep going,” Flynn recalled. “So much of the work that we do as actors is what the person is doing in front of you and what you’re reacting to. And to work on that idea through the layer of a computer was fun, and it was its own challenge… Both Tatiana and I, we’d we run to each other after each take and be like, ‘So fun! What if we did this? Or maybe this moment is more like this.’ There was a desire to be in the same room as well, which I think added to the chemistry.”
So there you have it, folks! Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed may be the slogan on Trevor’s camboy site, but it also seems to be a promise that this Very Good Show and performances will live up to. So tune in to new episodes Wednesdays on Apple TV.
Stay tuned for more Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed coverage from Decider.
