Carice Van Houten said working on Game of Thrones (2011) turned her off of filming nude scenes and refuses to do them anymore, especially in the wake of the #MeToo movement. She told Insider that she's brought the lesson she learned to her other projects, including Instinct. She said she and director Halina Reijn made it into a dogma where they are done with nudity. "We don't need to show nudity to create intimacy, we don't need to see breasts."
Instinct was the 2019 Dutch submission for the Oscar for Best International Feature Film.
Marwan Kenzari's character Idris is incarcerated for sexual assault of a very violent nature. His character in Loft (2010) also displayed the same proclivities, and was a victim of domestic abuse as well.
Actress Carice van Houten and director Halina Reijn have been friends for many years, and previously worked together on many projects, most prominently Black Book (2006).