Evan Rachel Wood and James Marsden speak onstage during the 'Westworld' panel discussion at the HBO portion of the 2016 Television Critics Association Summer Tour at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on July 30, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Frederick M. Brown)
HBO's "Westworld" has come under fire after airing a four-minute orgy, which viewers described as disturbing and awkward. The scene in question showed Dolores Abernathy (Evan Rachel Wood) and Willian (Jimmy Simpson) traveling to the town of Pariah, where they stumbled upon a decadent orgy.
Not long after the fifth episode aired, many viewers took to Twitter to express their disappointment over the steamy scenes. It is believed that more than 40 actors were used in the four-minute orgy scene.
Sorry Westworld - why the orgy? Why the nudity? Was a very intriguing show, but now I'm done!!
— Todaysrants.com (@TodaysrantsCom) November 1, 2016
Even Dan Gainor, Vice President of Business and Culture at the Media Research Centre in the United States, marked the showrunners' decision to feature so much nudity as disturbing. He said that the HBO series is a disturbing reminder of the sick and demented way Hollywood view the world.
"HBO is a network that broadcasts Sesame Street re-runs," Gainor said in a statement obtained by The Express. "And yes, parents should turn it off, stop paying for it and block it."
However, former TV executive Scot Safon defended the Medieval-themed series, insisting the steamy scenes are necessary for the show's plot development. He added "Westworld" is a show about ideas and it is done with tremendous artistry.
It came after showrunners Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan sat down in an interview with Entertainment Weekly to further explain the controversial wild orgy scene in "Westworld" episode 5. The showrunners stated the raunchy scene seemingly allowed Dolores to evolve.
"The nudity in the show in most episodes is not supposed to be titillating," Nolan stressed. "It is about humanizing the hosts, it's about control."
The showrunners added they wanted to showcase another area of the Westworld park, which is more extreme than the others. In order to shoot the steamy scenes, they insisted on working on a closed set and believed everyone had a good time filming it.
Check out HBO's "Westworld" episode 5 below:
