'The safest person': Laura Dern praises co-star Liam Hemsworth over intimacy scenes

Hollywood actor Laura Dern has praised her Australian co-star Liam Hemsworth in an interview discussing filming intimate scenes in new Netflix movie Lonely Planet.

Dern, 57, said she "was so lucky" to work with Hemsworth, 34, as he was "literally the safest person I could ever talk through everything in my life with".

The Big Little Lies star, who previously worked alongside Aussie Nicole Kidman in the drama series, revealed that she and Hemsworth had struck up a strong bond.

READ MORE: Jamie Foxx makes huge return after 18 years

"By the time we were doing those scenes, there was nothing we couldn't talk about together and work out creatively, professionally, all of that," she told People magazine in a recent interview.

However, the pair also benefited from the presence of an intimacy coordinator, Dern said.

"We also had a lot of support. We had much, much discussion," she told the publication.

The role of the intimacy coordinator is to support the actor in any intimate action on set, such as contact kissing, physical touch, and simulated sex.

READ MORE: 'I do not need the money': Star announces retirement

They often plan, choreograph and liaise with actors and the production team to ensure that those in front of, and behind, the camera feel safe and comfortable with every aspect and stage of the process.

Dern, who won the best supporting actress award at the Oscars in 2020 for Marriage Story, added that she finds it "incredible … that film and filmmaking have changed so that everyone is comfortable in their voice and can set boundaries comfortably without fear of losing a job or being unpopular".

"We both, as young actors, have had a lot of other kinds of experiences on movies," she said.

Dern has had a long career in Hollywood, receiving Oscar nominations for her performances in Wild and Rambling Rose before her win four years ago.

Liam, the youngest of the Hemsworth brothers, is best known for playing Gale Hawthorne in the Hunger Games movies.

Lonely Planet tells the story of a "newly single novelist", played by Dern, who "finds an unexpected connection with a younger man who's reevaluating his life choices," according to Netflix.

Nine Entertainment Co (the publisher of this website) owns and operates the streaming service Stan.

FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in celebrity, lifestyle and opinion via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.