'Heartstopper' Onscreen Lovebirds Talk Beard Burn, 'Raunchy Scenes' as Season 3 Nears

Joe Locke and Kit Connor, the out leading men of the hit Netflix romantic dramedy "Heartstopper," shared some intimate details about how Season 3 turns up the sizzle factor with some steamy scenes.

In a wide-ranging interview with GQ, the two stars – who are barely in their 20s – talked about how being Hollywood heartthrobs thrust maturity onto them, the dizzying swiftness of their meteoric rise to worldwide fame, and wanting to push back against the sweet and wholesome gay image the show has instilled of them.

That sweet and wholesome vibe has almost been too much for some viewers, with Locke and Connor's characters – high school sweethearts named, respectively, Charlie and Nick – sharing nothing more steamy than the occasional kiss... until now, the young actors told GQ.

"By season three, we know each other very well," Connor told the magazine. "So it meant that in terms of approaching those more raunchy scenes, it still..."

Raunchy scenes?

Connor did not elaborate, save to say, "It's always something that's slightly weird about it."

The actor, who only reluctantly came out as bisexual thanks to fan pressure, was more forthcoming in recent comments to the Sunday Times, telling that publication that he and Locke had "shot a lot of footage" of sex scenes for the show's third season. "Not much actually ended up in the show," Connor added. "But we shot the sex scenes for about seven hours!"

Connor repeated the anecdote to GQ, adding that Locke suffered a bad case of beard burn as a result of that marathon shooting session.

"We were both just knackered," Connor recounted, adding, "Joe developed this huge scab on his chin" – a detail that elicited the comment. "Oh, it was horrible!" from Locke.

"We were kissing so much that it wasn't healing so it was getting worse and worse," Locke added.

Lcoke's case of beard burn was so noticeable that it could be seen appearing and disappearing from shot to shot as the scenes were edited, prompting intervention from the visual effects department.

"They had to VFX it out because it was so bad," Locke explained. "The day of, everyone was like, 'It's fine. Honestly, Joe, on camera, it looks fine.' But clearly it didn't, because they fully just smoothed out my chin."

The wounds from hazardous duty aside, "That was fun," Connor reckoned. "That was fun to kiss."

The two touched on the specter of getting pigeonholed – a nightmare for actors, and one with which out queer thespians in particular have had to contend.

"Nick and Charlie, they're not that much like us, but they are in some ways also very much like us," Connor reflected, "so sometimes you do find yourself kind of thinking you want to prove yourself. You want to prove that you can do different things."

"I find myself wanting to go to the other extreme," Locke agreed. "Every time I get sent a gay role, I'm like, 'I want to play, like, a straight Republican."

Locke recently voiced similar sentiments to Variety, telling the publication that a plethora of offers for gay roles has left him concerned he might be tagged as "a one-trick pony who was just the guy from 'Heartstopper'" and end up "being typecast as just playing a camp gay role. Because in [the] Marvel [series 'Agatha All Along']," Locke noted, "I also play a gay character."

But no less a powerhouse than Patti LuPone – a castmate from "Agatha All Along" – assured GQ that Locke has what it takes to rise above, especially since he's so firmly rooted in authenticity.

Locke, LuPone told the publication, "embraces the responsibility of queerness, and the acceptance of that and the celebration of that."

Locke's GQ interview took an amusing turn when he realized his fidgeting with a sweating glass of ice water had left a phallic-looking mark on the tablecloth. The self-possessed actor leaned into the moment, saying, "I'm so immature. I always make a penis, to the point where it's subconscious. I've done it for years and I always do it. If I get dinner with my grandparents, it's quite funny" – an admission that prompted his on-screen scene partner, Connor, to tease him with, "That's weird. You're weird."

Watch the Season 3 trailer for "Heartstopper" below.