Bella Maclean defended her decision to put in a no nudity clause into her contract before joining Hulu’s raunchy show Rivals.
“It was important because of how pure Taggie’s character was,” Maclean, 28, told Harper’s Bazaar UK in an interview published Tuesday, November 3, about the clause that still protects her two seasons into the show.
Maclean noted she “didn’t want to sexually exploit” her character, adding, “And I didn’t want to do that to myself either. That was really important to me, and I think it will stay important to me. There are some things I just want to keep to myself.”
The actress clarified she supported her costars who chose to strip down on camera.
“I don’t judge anyone who does it,” she said. “Sometimes it’s so beautiful. If I had Victoria Smurfit’s body, I’d probably be walking around naked!”
Maclean continued: “But in that sense, we’re all lucky because there are amazing intimacy coordinators on our job. I know that’s not the case for other people. We’re all good friends who can just say ‘No’ to the directors and they’ll listen.”
Based on Jilly Cooper‘s novel of the same name, Rivals follows a feud between two men fighting for control of a television station in 1980s Britain. While viewers waited to see whether Tony (David Tennant) or Rupert (Alex Hassell) would come out on top, Rupert’s surprising bond with Declan’s (Aidan Turner) daughter Taggie (Maclean) stole the show.
“Something about the age gap that is fascinating — because obviously it’s in the book and it’s a really important part of the story — is that it’s a complex trope in TV shows and in films,” Hassell, 46, told Us in 2024. “It isn’t a positive thing in culture that every 40-year-old man in every TV show has a young partner. But in this — and usually it has nothing to do with the story — it’s justified because it is a really important part of Rupert’s redemption.”
At the time, the duo weren’t sure how Rupert and Taggie’s connection would play out.
“Taggie really wants to be with Rupert. By the end of season 8 — well, hopefully by then they would be together,” Maclean quipped. “But by the end of episode 8, she made it very, very clear that she really wants to be with him, she loves him and she can’t hide that anymore. Basically, I think Taggie’s arc will be about rooting for Rupert and trying to get that. But whether or not they get together is another thing.”
More recently, Hassell and Maclean admitted they were surprised by the response to Rupert and Taggie’s relationship.
“I’ve certainly never been part of something before that is having a ripple effect in the real world,” Hassell shared with Us in May. “It’s fascinating.”
Maclean, meanwhile, recalled her initial concerns.
“We were probably nervous at points about the age gap,” she noted. “It’s so funny that we’re certain that people who we thought maybe would be curious or maybe were not such a big fan of the relationship ended up being people who loved it the most. It’s incredible.”
After seeing the online response, Hassell emphasized Rupert and Taggie’s connection is about more than just their ages. “It is about potentially this young and fairly open-hearted girl with her heart on her sleeve,” he said. “She is this innocent, naive young woman, and the strength of her love and purity could change the biggest rogue in the whole world. It is a very potent fantasy for young people.”
Rivals returns to Hulu Wednesday, November 11.
