‘This Is One Horny Panel’

Talk about a hot topic. On Friday’s episode of The View, the cohosts all got fired up when discussing the much-fussed sex scene in Bridgerton‘s latest season, which lasts for six minutes and has apparently caused some division among audiences about whether that’s just too long. The conversation was easily the most fun each of these women have had on a segment all year.

“I could never do a six-minute scene. First of all, shouting, ‘Get off me!’ takes just four seconds,” Joy Behar joked.

“Who is against a six-minute sex scene?!” Ana Navarro added, asking the crowd if they were among those complaining about the matter and getting zero feedback. “There’s no division mama.”

While Behar, who admitted she doesn’t watch the show, wasn’t sold that a six-minute sex scene could be justified, cohost Sunny Hostin was vehemently in favor of it: “It’s beautiful because it talks about consent. He says, ‘You want this?’ And she says, ‘Yes, definitely,’” Hostin explained, imitating the British accents of the stars, even.

“Ever since Sunny wrote that book with those dirty scenes in it, we can’t control her,” Behar sniped in response.

Alyssa Farah Griffin, who celebrated her 35th birthday on the episode, argued, “This is literally what we tune into Bridgerton for. You want the steamy, romantic sex scenes.”

Sara Haines was particularly enthralled and animated about the discussion, calling the scene “magical” and praising the “female gaze” of the production. “The sensual nature of how the buildup is, it takes me places just watching it,” she said candidly. “I can’t be alone!”

“No, you’re not,” Behar responded. “This is one horny panel.”

Hostin continued to explain her appreciation for the show, saying, “Shonda Rhimes, I think, was very clear that she wanted to make sure [the scene] came from a female gaze… And what’s overlooked about this particular actress is that she’s Romanesque, right? She’s not your little skinny, skinny mini. And so some people came out and said, ‘Those are a lot of boobs to see,’ and she said something that I loved, she said, ‘You don’t get to see perfect breasts often.’ I was like, ‘Go ahead!’” Hostin later praised the costuming and set designs for adding to the sensuality of the setup.

In the end, Behar was convinced by her cohosts’ animated discussions of the matter and concluded, “I think it’s good that it enhances marriages. Because you get sick of each other, and this can get you going again.”

“Oh it’s so true!… My husband knows when I’m Bridgerton.” Haines then added a pointed look at the crowd for a teasing effect.

The View, weekdays, 11 a.m. ET, ABC