'Red, White & Royal Blue' Actors Say Humor and Mints Helped Them 'Stay Fresh' During Sex Scenes (Exclusive)

Nicholas Galitzine says he and costar Taylor Zakhar Perez have "the same sense of humor," which "made the chemistry of it all a lot easier"

Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine made certain their breath was never as "hot and steamy" as their kissing scenes.

The pair star as rivals-turned-lovers in the new rom-com Red, White & Royal Blue, an adaptation of the beloved 2019 bestseller by Casey McQuiston.

Perez is Alex Claremont-Diaz, the son of America's first female president (played by Uma Thurman), and Galitzine serves as England's Prince Henry. When they're forced to get to know each other, they strike up an unprecedented romance, diplomatic optics be damned.

In this week's issue of PEOPLE, Perez, 31, and Galitzine, 28, share how a mutual trust between them made the sex scenes less awkward on set.

"Making intimacy super serious can be a bad thing because you get really in your head about it," says Galitzine, who previously starred in last year's Netflix hit Purple Hearts. "Taylor and I, we have enough trust and respect in each other that it was all about always feeling comfort and being able to communicate."

Adds Perez, who comes with Kissing Booth credentials, "It was just choreography. We would be counting in our heads like a dance: 'Grab one, two; squeeze one, two.' "

Related: 'Red, White & Royal Blue' Director Says He's 'Surprised' His Gay Rom-Com Got an R Rating (Exclusive)

"We just brought humor before we tag in and humor after we tag out, which made everything less serious and kept us in that suspension of disbelief," he says. "That's how I go through life, finding the humor in everything, the levity, and I brought that. I think Nick's very similar."

And don't forget the British-brand Smints readily available between takes. "It's a little mint," explains Galitzine, who grew up in London. "You want to stay fresh when you're doing these scenes. Lots of making out."

Director Matthew López recalls a months-long "exhaustive" casting process searching for the right Alex and Henry. Eventually they found Perez and Galitzine, who had a "natural and instantaneous" chemistry.

"They would start riffing and ad-libbing with each other. They both were able to really keep up with one another," López says. "They speak very different versions of the same language — a language only the two of them possessed together."

So what made Perez, one of eight kids from a "blue collar family" in Chicago, and Galitzine, who grew up with rugby aspirations across the pond, click together?

"As soon as we started chatting, we just vibed," says Perez. "We had no ego in the moment of meeting each other, knowing how much this book means to people."

Galitzine agrees, adding, "We got a sense of each other and realized we had the same sense of humor. It made the chemistry of it all a lot easier."

And their banter off camera proved perfect for the flirtatious back-and-forth their characters required.

"What people love, I think, about the book and hopefully will love about the film is this rapid, quick-fire ping-ponging of insults at the beginning, kind of their flirtations," says Galitzine. "We were always keeping the bit going."

"We were always doing a bit!" says Perez with a laugh. "To the point where by end of summer Nick would be like, 'Are you doing a bit?' He was over it. 'Is this a bit?' I was like, 'No! This is a real thing.' That's how much we were into it — I was confusing Nick whether we were just having a normal conversation."

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Perez says a "perfect storm" allowed them to basically "stay in character all summer" while filming the movie.

"Nick and I still have really great conversations and still mess with each other," he says. "It comes from that level of trust you get when you work with somebody. With us, it was a rapid ascension into trust because we went right into intimacy-coordinating and were like, 'You? Me? Going to be weird, but I trust you. I hope you trust me. Let's go.' "

That playfulness is demonstrated when the duo explain how they'll maintain their friendship after Red, White & Royal Blue.

"It's over once we're contractually done. Never talking to this dude again. Ever," jokes Galitzine, as Perez plays along, "Yeah — unless we have a sequel and I have to talk to him again."

Red, White & Royal Blue is streaming on Prime Video.

This interview was completed prior to the ongoing actors' strike.

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