Faking It with Ariel and Morgan – Details, episodes & analysis

We heard you. LOUDLY.

In this very special holiday Bonus Episode, Ariel and Morgan dive headfirst into Heated Rivalry, the wildly requested gay hockey romance that dropped on November 28 and immediately set the internet on fire. 

Based on Rachel Reid’s beloved romance novels, the series follows Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, two elite professional hockey players whose rivalry turns into a secret, years-long love affair. What starts as a teenage hookup evolves into a deeply emotional, highly physical relationship that unfolds over nearly a decade, on and off the ice. 

Ariel and Morgan break down multiple intimacy scenes from the first two episodes and unpack why Heated Rivalry feels so different from most male-male sex scenes on TV.

They get into it all:

• Why these sex scenes feel unusually realistic, tender, and embodied
• How athletic bodies move differently and why that matters for choreography
• The importance of aftercare, communication, and check-ins onscreen
• What the show gets right about first times, awkward moments, and learning each other’s bodies
• Why queer intimacy is so often shortened and how Heated Rivalry refuses to cut away
• The now-iconic back arch that has gay Twitter in a chokehold

This episode celebrates queer sex that’s messy, hot, funny, imperfect, and deeply human, and why representation like this actually matters. It’s all the spice, none of the filler, and a perfect way to close out the year before we return January 7th. 

Give a Little Queer Holiday Love

Please consider supporting organizations that protect and uplift LGBTQ youth. A few of our favorites:

Trans Lifeline
GLAAD
Transanta

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Credits — Heated Rivalry

Creator / Director / Writer: Jacob Tierney
 Producers: Bell Media / Crave (limited series)
 Intimacy Coordinator: Chala Hunter
 Actors (selected): Hudson Williams (Shane Hollander); Connor Dory (Ilya Rozanov).

 © 2024 Bell Media / Crave. All rights reserved.

Based on the novels: Rachel Reid (Heated Rivalry (2009),

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🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

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Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

It’s our second holiday episode, which means it’s time for a true Christmas classic: Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut (1999), a film that somehow contains one of the most infamous orgy scenes in cinema history.

In this episode, Ariel and Morgan unpack the cultural mythology surrounding the masked ritual scene and explain what the film is really doing beneath the cloaks, candles, and choreography. Spoiler: it’s not about pleasure, it’s about power, performance, and male insecurity. 

They break down:

• Why the orgy may function more as theater than eroticism
• How masking, choreography, and voyeurism guide the audience’s gaze
• The role of ritual, anonymity, and class in the scene’s design
• Stanley Kubrick’s discomfort with sex and how that shapes the final result
• Ariel's hottest take ever (possibly in the history of cinema? You decide.)

This episode reframes the orgy not as transgression, but as a deeply controlled performance: one that exposes how sex, status, and masculinity are staged, surveilled, and policed.

Equal parts film history, intimacy analysis, and holiday chaos, this one pairs best with a glass of wine, a Venetian mask, and a healthy distrust of men in cloaks.

Give a Little Queer Holiday Love

If you’re feeling the spirit, consider supporting organizations that protect and uplift trans and LGBTQ youth. A few of our favorites:

Trans Lifeline
GLAAD
Transanta

Even a small donation helps keep queer kids safe, supported, and celebrated, and that’s the kind of holiday magic we believe in.

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Credits — Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Director: Stanley Kubrick
Writers: Stanley Kubrick; Frederic Raphael
Based on the novella: Traumnovelle (Dream Story) by Arthur Schnitzler
Producers: Stanley Kubrick
Choreography (uncredited influence): Yolande Snaith
Actors (featured in discussed scenes): Tom Cruise; Julian Davis; Abigail Good; Cate Blanchett (voice, uncredited)
© 1999 Warner Bros. / Pole Star / Hobby Films. All rights reserved.

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👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

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💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

Welcome to Faking It, the podcast where two professional intimacy coordinators pull back the curtain on how intimacy is really made for film and TV.

This show blends behind-the-scenes secrets with laugh-out-loud commentary. Think: spicy movie moments, absurd Hollywood stories, and real talk about love, sex, and the art of pretending.

If you’ve ever wondered how actors “make it look real” (without actually doing it), or just want to cackle through tales of fake sweat, fake kisses, and fake bedsheets, you’re in the right place.

Expect humor, hot takes, and the perfect mix of NSFW and LOL. 

Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

For our holiday special, we’re entering The Sapphic Canon.
This week, Ariel and Morgan are joined by filmmaker and comedy icon Amanda Holland (On the Phone with Ash and Amanda) to dissect one of the most breathtakingly intimate love scenes in queer cinema: the motel moment from Todd Haynes’ Carol (2015).

From tension you could pour over pancakes to the robe pull that changed lesbian history, the trio breaks down why this scene still feels like a masterclass in sensual restraint, visual storytelling, and character vulnerability. 

They unpack it all:

• How power dynamics shift without a word, told only through body language
• Why the simulated oral moment works… and where it gets a little thigh-heavy
• How Cate Blanchett seduces by doing absolutely nothing except existing in a robe (a power move we should all aspire to)

This episode is equal parts craft, chaos, holiday cheer, and deep queer yearning: the perfect festive treat.

Give a Little Queer Holiday Love

If you’re feeling the spirit, consider supporting organizations that protect and uplift trans and LGBTQ youth year-round. A few of our favorites:

Buy Fruity TV Gear (Like a Christmas Carol or Happy HoliGays) here! 

The Trevor Project: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/
Trans Lifeline: https://translifeline.org/
Ali Forney Center: https://www.aliforneycenter.org/

Even a small donation helps keep queer kids safe, supported, and celebrated, and that’s the kind of holiday magic we believe in.

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Director: Todd Haynes
Writers: Phyllis Nagy (screenplay); Patricia Highsmith (novel)
Producers: Elizabeth Karlsen; Christine Vachon; Stephen Woolley
Actors (selected): Cate Blanchett; Rooney Mara
© 2015 Number 9 Films / Killer Films / Film4 Productions. All rights reserved.

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

Marking the end of hoa hoa hoa season, we finally did it. We tackled the honeymoon scene: the headboard-shattering, pillow-exploding, furniture-destroying moment that launched a thousand fanfics and exactly zero realistic intimacy expectations.

In this episode, Ariel and Morgan break down why Edward and Bella’s “rough sex” isn’t rough… or even sex-adjacent. From supernatural metaphors to YA-safe choreography, they unpack how a scene expected to portray feral passion somehow ends up looking like a vampire doing light construction work.

We get into it all:

• Why the choreography feels like a Marvel fight scene wearing a silk robe
• How PG-13 rules shape what “intensity” is allowed to look like onscreen
• Why the scene is accidentally more about property damage than eroticism
• Bella’s incredible chill despite the world’s craziest bruises
• How an intimacy coordinator might approach supernatural strength without losing human stakes
• And whether anyone in film history has ever looked more relaxed in freezing cold water

It’s part genre analysis, part supernatural thirst discourse, and part home-renovation commentary, a true Faking It classic.

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Director: Bill Condon
Writer (Screenplay): Melissa Rosenberg
Writer (Novel): Stephenie Meyer
Producers: Wyck Godfrey; Karen Rosenfelt; Stephenie Meyer
Actors (featured in the scene): Kristen Stewart; Robert Pattinson
© 2011 Summit Entertainment / Temple Hill Entertainment / Sunswept Entertainment. All rights reserved.

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

This one’s flexing in all the right ways.

Ariel and Morgan break down the sweaty, gritty, gloriously unhinged intimacy of Love Lies Bleeding, a film where bodies don’t just collide, they transform. From gym-floor lust to desert-heat devotion, they explore how the movie uses athleticism, desire, and danger to tell a love story that’s as physical as it is emotional.

They get into it all:

• Why Love Lies Bleeding treats strength as a love language
• How the film choreographs intimacy that’s sexy, sweaty, and deeply character-driven
• The power (and vulnerability) of hyper-built bodies in erotic storytelling
• What makes Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian’s chemistry feel so raw, charged, and grounded
• How muscle, menace, and mythology collide in this neon-soaked queer thriller
• And yes… what it means to stage a scene where love might actually burst a vein

This episode is equal parts admiration, analysis, and gym-class nostalgia,  celebrating the beauty, intensity, and feral tenderness of one of the most unforgettable romances in recent memory.

(A big thank you to our listener Brielle for suggesting this one!)

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Director: Rose Glass
Writers: Rose Glass; Weronika Tofilska 
Producers: Andrea Cornwell; Oliver Kassman 
Actors (selected): Kristen Stewart; Katy O’Brian
© 2024 A24 / Film4 / Lobo Films / Escape Plan

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

This one’s… slippery.

Ariel and Morgan break down one of the most chaotic “intimacy” scenes in sitcom history: the moment Danny DeVito crawls out of a couch, naked, sweaty, and reborn, at a Christmas party in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

From the logistics of modesty garments to the ethics of public nudity (fictional or otherwise), they dive deep into what happens when comedy, discomfort, and vulnerability collide.

They unpack it all:

• How Danny DeVito pulled off the greasiest birth scene since Ace Ventura
• Why vulnerability and humiliation often overlap in on-screen nudity
• How consent and context change everything, even when it’s for laughs
• And yes, the technical art of looking “fully nude” while staying fully covered

It’s part anatomy of comedy, part anatomy of modesty garments, and somehow… still one of the most body-positive episodes yet.

New episodes drop every other Wednesday!

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Director: Matt Shakman
Writers: David Hornsby; Becky Mann; Audra Sielaff
Producers: Rob McElhenney; Charlie Day; Glenn Howerton
Actors: Charlie Day; Glenn Howerton; Rob McElhenney; Kaitlin Olson; Danny DeVito
TV Show: Always Sunny in Philadelphia - A Very Sunny Christmas (Season 6, Episode 13)
© 2010 - Produced by FX Productions / 20th Television & companions; originally aired on FX. All rights reserved.

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

For our first-ever BONUS EPISODE, we’re sinking our teeth into something perfectly suited for spooky season: Ryan Coogler’s 2025 gothic horror hit, Sinners.

This one has it all: vampires, sensuality, Southern heat, and Michael B. Jordan at his steamiest. Ariel and Morgan break down two pivotal intimacy scenes, one tender, one terrifying, and unpack how Sinners turns eroticism into a matter of survival.

We get into it all:

• Why this film proves that you don’t need nudity to make a scene scorching
• How Sinners uses race, power, and danger to reimagine vampire mythology
• The difference between lusty vs romantic intimacy
• And yes… what it really means to share spit with a vampire 🩸

From vampire lore to S-curves to consent through the lens of bloodlust, this is an episode that’s equal parts academic, erotic, and absurdly fun.

This one’s for the horror lovers, the film nerds, and anyone who’s ever been Team Edward and Team Jacob. And Team Spike. Like Ariel is. 

New episodes drop every other Wednesday!

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Director: Ryan Coogler
Writer: Ryan Coogler
Producers: Zinzi Coogler; Sev Ohanian; Ryan Coogler
Actors: Michael B. Jordan; Hailee Steinfeld; Miles Caton; Jack O’Connell; Wunmi Mosaku; Jayme Lawson
© 2025 - Produced by Proximity Media, distributed by Warner Brothers Pictures. All rights reserved.

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

The bite heard ’round the world.

In this episode, Ariel and Morgan take on one of the most infamous (and crazily campy) scenes in horror-comedy history: the gynecologist sequence from Teeth (2007).

From questionable medical protocol to perfect camp choreography, they break down what works, what really doesn’t, and why this movie about vagina dentata still manages to make audiences clench 17 years later.

They tackle it all:

• How Teeth flips the horror trope of sexual violence on its head (and bites back)
• Why good choreography and body awareness make this scene disturbingly effective
• The line between tension, comedy, and terror
• What intimacy coordination could’ve looked like for a scene this outrageous
• And yes—whether it technically counts as an intimacy scene (spoiler: it does)

Somehow, amidst the severed fingers and social commentary, there’s genuine insight into consent, choreography, and why horror movies might secretly “get” intimacy better than most rom-coms!

New episodes drop every other Wednesday!

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"TEETH"
Director: Mitchell Lichtenstein
Writer: Mitchell Lichtenstein
Producers: Mitchell Lichtenstein; Joyce Pierpoline
Actors: Jess Weixler; Josh Pais
© 2007 - Produced by Pierpoline Films, distributed by Roadside Attractions. All rights reserved.

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.

Get ready for one of our most asked—and most controversial—questions: Do actors ever actually have sex on camera? In this episode, we're diving deep into the blurred lines between filmmaking and pornography.

Ariel surprises Morgan with a deep dive into the notoriously heated and hard-to-find 2005 film, Lie with Me, a movie that famously plays with this very question. We break down the difference between softcore, hardcore, and simulated sex scenes, and ask: does it have to be real to feel real? Can simulated sex be more artistic—or even more erotic—than the real thing?

We tackle the big questions:

• What's the practical difference between a simulated sex scene and a pornographic one?
• How would an intimacy coordinator even approach a scene that calls for real sex?
• What does Lie with Me achieve by pushing the boundary, and at what cost?
• Where do we, as professionals, draw the line between artistic expression and exploitation?

This is a must-listen for anyone curious about the raw, unvarnished mechanics of on-screen intimacy. Spoiler alert: the answers are far from black and white.

New episodes drop every other Wednesday!

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"LIE WITH ME"
Director: Clement Virgo
Writers: Tamara Berger; Clement Virgo; Carrie Paupst Shaughnessy
Producers: Damon D’Oliveira; Hartley Gorenstein
Actors (in transcript): Lauren Lee Smith; Eric Balfour
© 2005 — Produced by Conquering Lion Pictures, distributed by ThinkFilm. All rights reserved.

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Support the show

🔗 Connect & Support the Show

👀 Watch the Video Version: See our reactions! The video podcast is available on Spotify and YouTube.
💌 Suggest a Scene & Get Bonuses: Join our Patreon to request movies for us to break down and access exclusive bonus episodes HERE!
📱 Follow Us for Chaos: Get behind-the-scenes content and updates on Instagram @FakingItThePod
🌐 Visit Our Website: Find all our links and more at FakingItThePod.com
🎶Theme Song is Faking It by Mike Goetz

🎧 Subscribe for Free: Never miss an episode! Subscribe on your favorite podcast app.

💬 Review Us: Love the show? Give us 5 stars! It helps other listeners find us.

Stay real, Fakers!

Legal Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are our own. This episode is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Nothing here is intended to defame, slander, or infringe upon any individual or entity. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners.