Keira Knightley says her contract is very clear about what she is prepared to do when it comes to movie sex scenes and that she has approval over the final edit. Photo / Getty Images

Keira Knightley has opened up about the complexities of filming sex scenes, revealing that she has clear stipulations about what she's willing to do in a movie.

The pregnant Pirates of the Caribbean star, 34, is married to musician James Righton — with whom she already has a four-year-old daughter, Edie.

In a new interview with Whimn, she explained that her attitude towards racy scenes had changed now that she's in her 30s.

"I think I am in a position where I can be quite dictatorial about what I am comfortable with and what I am not. I am in a position where I can say yes and no," Knightley said.

"I have a contract that is very clear about what I am prepared to do, and with sex scenes in particular I have approval over the final edit.

"In general with sex scenes, and the way I demand the way they are done now, is they need to be absolutely specific. You almost have to do them like a dance sequence. 'This is exactly what we want from this shot. This exactly where you are kissing. This is exactly what's going on', because that's the way everyone has control over it and everyone can feel comfortable."

Earlier this year, the actress opened up about her favourite sex scene to film — her famous tryst with James McAvoy in Atonement.

"The best sex scene I've done on-screen is the one in Atonement, on the bookshelf," she told Vulture. "It was both the best sex scene but also (the best) to shoot."

In her interview with Whimn, Knightley explained that director Joe Wright's direction had made the iconic scene so successful.

"That was orchestrated within an inch of its life. It was, 'Foot goes up there, hand goes down there', and that is a really good sex scene."

However, now that she's a mother, Knightley is less keen on shooting those types of scenes.

In her latest movie, The Aftermath, she opted to use a body double for her X-rated scenes with Alexander Skarsgard.

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"On this film there was a body double, so this wasn't me. I was totally comfortable with doing nudity when I was younger, but post-child? Hey, I am really happy with the body. It did exactly what it needed to do, it grew her, I birthed her, I fed her," Knightley told the publication.

"It's all f***ing good, but now I am in my mid-30s I don't want to show it to a ring of dudes on set I don't know and not to an entire public. So what was really great was that we had a young lady who was very happy to show it … She was all right with that, so there we go."

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