David Dawson Says He and Harry Styles Looked 'Out for Each Other' During My Policeman Sex Scenes

Actor David Dawson says he and Harry Styles looked out for each other when it came time to film intimate scenes for My Policeman.

While stopping by PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly's photo and video studio at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival on Monday, the British actor, 40, explained how he reached a comfort level with pop star Styles, 28, prior to working on their sex scenes together.

"Very quickly you have to get rid of any kind of notion of what you knew of the musician before and just deal with him as a fellow actor. And he makes that incredibly easy to do," Dawson says of Styles. "He's incredibly down to earth. He's a good Northern lad like myself."

He says they had a three-week rehearsal process that allowed them to "build that friendship and chemistry" between himself, Styles and costar Emma Corrin. Additionally, director Michael Grandage created a comfortable, collaborative environment on set, the actor says.

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With an intimacy coordinator, they all "explored what we wanted those scenes to be together, so that at all times we all felt a lot of trust and support in the process."

Dawson says, "And me and Harry also promised each other that we'd always look out for each other during it so we both felt always supported and comfortable. And, actually, I can't emphasize the importance of an intimacy coordinator, the impact that brings to the set."

"You might think that it would make people feel restrained in what they do," he adds, "but you actually gain a freedom, I think, because everybody feels very comfortable and respected in what they're making."

After My Policeman's TIFF premiere this weekend, Styles said during a Q&A that he felt "very lucky to get to work with David and Emma."

"When you have the opportunity to work with people that you just feel good hanging around, they're both wonderful people to be around," he said. "So I think having a base of a real friendship outside of the characters obviously allows for kind of the friendship scenes, if you will, it doesn't require much acting, and the kind of more intense scenes, there's a lot of trust and safety there. All of that kind of benefits I think from just a real connection."

My Policeman is in select theaters Oct. 21, then on Prime Video Nov. 4.