Omar Apollo decided a physical transformation was needed before taking on his sex scene in Queer.
In a new Interview Magazine conversation with fellow Queer star Drew Starkey, the singer-songwriter, 27, revealed that he has a sex scene with Daniel Craig in the film. He shared that although it wasn’t a request from director Luca Guadagnino, he took it upon himself to lose some weight for the role.
“I had to get on the soup diet,” he said. “Luca did not tell me to lose weight, but when you’re about to have a sex scene with Daniel Craig, you’re like, ‘Oh, dude, I can’t be looking off.’”
I was at 200 lbs., because I’m 6’5”. It’s around where I should be, honestly. But I got down to 181 when the movie came,” Apollo continued. “I lost 20 lbs. because I read in the script that my character had a flat brown stomach. I was like, ‘Damn, I’m actually not flat right now.’ I had to get it together, and I was on tour with SZA. Luckily, I didn’t have that many lines.”
Starkey boasted that Apollo and Craig’s sex scene was “so good” and “very sensual.” Apollo then added that he had a “really cool experience” working with the James Bondactor.
“He definitely has this presence to him that is felt from far away,” he explained. “I remember asking him, ‘How do you feel when the camera’s on?’ And he said, ‘To be honest, every time the camera’s on me, I’m terrified.’ I thought that was beautiful.”
“You have to be vulnerable. You have to be open to these emotions,” he added. “It was such an honest answer.”
During the conversation, Starkey shared that he also did some dieting to prepare for the historical romantic drama. “I dropped about 30 pounds,” he told Apollo. “I got a little bit too thin, and Luca was like, ‘Hey, bring it back up a little bit.’”
Adapted from the novel of the same name by William S. Burroughs, Queer follows the self-conscious and insecure William Lee (Craig) as he recounts his life in Mexico City, during which he befriends and pursues Eugene Allerton (Starkey), a recently discharged Navy serviceman from Florida.
The film also stars Jason Schwartzman, Lesley Manville, Andra Ursuta, Michael Borremans and David Lowery.
