Martin Freeman responds to backlash over 'gross' sex scene between him and Jenna Ortega in Miller's Girl

Martin Freeman has finally addressed the criticism surrounding the controversial sex scene between him and Jenna Ortega in their film Miller's Girl.

The movie, which premiered in the US in January, left many viewers feeling extremely uncomfortable due to its explicit nature, depicting intimate moments between Freeman, 52, and 21-year-old Ortega’s on-screen characters.

The three-decade age gap between the two actors sparked widespread backlash on social media, with many users expressing their discomfort and labeling the scene as "gross" and "troubling."

Now, Freeman has broken his silence on the furore and defended the film, telling The Times that it was meant to be “grown-up and nuanced.”

He shared: “It's not saying, ‘Isn't [an age-gap romance] great’.”

The British actor also told the outlet that “stories about difficult subjects” can be “tainted by association.”

Referencing Steven Spielberg's 1992 film Schindler's List, in which Liam Neeson played a businessman who joins the Nazi party during World War II, he continued: “And that's a shame. Are we gonna have a go at Liam Neeson for being in a film about the Holocaust?”

The film saw Ortega portray an 18-year-old university student named Cairo Sweet opposite Freeman’s Jonathan Miller, a married English professor.

In the flick, produced by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, viewers watched as the pair began an inappropriate relationship after Cairo is tasked with a creative writing assignment.

The two become increasingly close as they push the boundaries of a teacher-student relationship and one scene in particular has social media talking.

In the scene, Jonathan is reading Cairo’s submitted work, in which she describes an intimate interaction between them, while Freeman and Ortega act out their characters’ fantasy.

The intimate scene has shocked many, mainly given the three decade age difference between the actors.

Despite some finding the intimate scenes “gross”, the film’s intimacy coordinator, Kristina Arjona, revealed that Ortega was involved in their decision-making.

She told the Daily Mail: “There were many, many people throughout this process, engaging with (Jenna) to make sure that it was consistent with what she was comfortable with, and she was very determined and very sure of what she wanted to do.

“I'm hyper-aware of both my talent and making sure that we're consistently checking in and that at no point are any of their boundaries being surpassed.

“And again, making sure - especially with someone who's significantly younger - that they are giving continuous consent.”