Dominic West supports Ruth Wilson over criticisms of The Affair

‘She is absolutely right,’ British actor said of co-star’s comments about experience on set

Dominic West has thrown his support behind Ruth Wilson, who he said was “right” about her criticisms of The Affair.

The pair starred in the Showtime series, which premiered in 2014 and followed two couples whose lives are affected by an extramarital relationship. West, as well as opening up about the controversial photos that appeared to show him kissing Lily James, has addressed Wilson’s comments for the first time in a new interview.

In 2020, Wilson, who did not appear in the show’s fifth and final season, said that she left the show as she “didn’t feel safe” at certain points on set.

The British star said there was “a lot of noise and anger surrounding” her experience, adding: “There was a situation on The Affair where things didn’t feel right, and I dealt with them, and I managed to protect myself.”

Wilson’s comments arrived after people who had worked on The Affair alleged that the actor, who is reported to have been prevented from speaking about her experiences by an NDA, “had long wanted to leave the show because of ongoing frustrations with the nudity required of her” for her many sex scenes, which led to “friction” with showrunner Sarah Treem.

While West told The Sunday Times that he was hesitant to wade into the matter, he concurred with Wilson’s comments, stating: “We talked a lot about it and I suppose I did experience it. I don’t really like talking about it but … yeah, everything Ruth has said is absolutely right.”

In an open letter of response to Wilson’s original claims, Treem, who also created the show In Treatment, refuted all claims that she created a negative work environment on set.

She wrote: “On a continuous basis throughout Ruth’s time on the show, I tried to protect her and shoot sex scenes safely and respectfully.”

Ruth Wilson and Dominic West in ‘The Affair' (Showtime)

Elsewhere in the interview, West said that he is able to occasionally joke about the media frenzy surrounding photos that showed him appear to kiss his Pursuit of Love co-star James with his wife Catherine FitzGerald, Viscountess Lambton.

“I hesitate to speak on my wife’s behalf because it was obviously horrible, particularly for her,” he said. “But we do joke about it sometimes. Because whenever we went out together, the papers would always say we were ‘putting on a show of unity’.

West, who played Prince Charles in the last two seasons of Netflix series The Crown, will star in A View from the Bridge at the Theatre Royal Haymarket between 22 May to 3 August.