The story revolves around a woman who seeks a young sex worker to help her experience pleasurable sex. The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 22 January , and was released on 17 June , theatrically in the United Kingdom by Lionsgate , and digitally in the United States by Searchlight Pictures as a Hulu original film.
The film was critically acclaimed with praise given to the film's performances, with both actors nominated at the British Academy Film Awards , while Thompson also received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy. In a hotel room, Nancy Stokes welcomes a male sex worker named Leo Grande. Anxious, she explains that she has never had an orgasm, and has vowed never again to fake one after the death of her husband two years earlier.
Nancy is insecure about her body and age, and embarrassed at having hired Leo, who tries to put her at ease. Leo expresses no shame about sex work, but he reveals that his mother believes him to be an oil rig worker. Nancy shares that she is disappointed in her adult children, adding that she is a retired religious education teacher. Her husband was her only sexual partner and found oral sex demeaning, and they never deviated from unfulfilling missionary sex for thirty-one years together.
Nancy recounts her most sensual experience: as a teenager on a family holiday in Greece, a hotel worker took an interest in her. Alone in the garden, he began kissing and fingering her before being interrupted, and she left the following day.
Seeing Nancy aroused and relaxed by her own story, Leo kisses and fingers her. A week later, Nancy meets Leo in the same hotel room for a second session. Though still not having achieved an orgasm, she has prepared a bucket list of sexual activities to experience for the first time, beginning with fellatio. Nancy remains anxious, worsened by phone calls from her daughter, but Leo relaxes her through dancing and a massage.
