murder on the dancefloor

‘Saltburn’ is now streaming, so let’s talk about THAT solo scene featuring Barry Keoghan

By · 7 comments
Image Credit: ‘Saltburn,’ MGM

Emerald Fennell’s darkly comedic—and homoerotic!—thriller Saltburn is now streaming via Amazon Prime Video, which means if you haven’t made it to the theater in the past month, you finally have an opportunity to see the movie everyone’s been talking about this season.

And while reviews are decidedly all over the place, one thing audiences seem to agree on is that Fennell’s film knows how to deliver some shocking, unforgettable scenes. By now, you may have heard about the one with the bathtub?

Say what you will about Saltburn, but we can’t remember the last time we saw something that horny at the movies.

With the freaky flick now more widely available, with thought it was high time we took a deeper dive into its wild final scene, the one that shows star Barry Keoghan’s full—and we do mean full—commitment to the role.

*Caution: Major spoilers ahead for Saltburn.*

In case you haven’t seen the movie yet, but are here just because you want to know more about the nudity (hey, no shame in that—welcome!), here’s a quick crash course on Saltburn‘s plot:

It’s 2006 and the brainy, enigmatic Oliver Quick (Keoghan) is beginning his first semester at the prestigious Oxford University on scholarship, feeling out of place among his much wealthier classmates.

Soon, Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi) catches his eye, one of the wealthiest and most charming of them all. After Oliver shows him kindness in a moment of need, the two become unlikely friends and, out of pity, Felix invites him to spend the following summer on his family’s estate, Saltburn.

It’s here that we meet the gregarious yet shallow and disaffected Cattons (Rosamund Pike, Richard E. Grant, Alison Oliver), as Oliver tries to ingratiate himself to the family all while nursing what is clearly an unhealthy obsession with Felix.

Related:

Just how gay is ‘Saltburn’? A spoiler-filled breakdown of Jacob Elordi & Barry Keoghan’s darkly funny thriller

We can think of at least three jaw-dropping scenes in ‘Saltburn’ that’ll have the gays talking for the rest of the year.

As Oliver’s behavior gets more and more erratic, Felix eventually finds out his “friend” had been lying about his mostly pleasant situation back home, and turns on him. Unable to bear the rejection, Oliver ends up killing Felix—and then orchestrates the deaths of each of the Cattons, one by one, until he’s the only one left standing at Saltburn…

Which is what leads us to that unshakeable final scene: Our antihero, completely unclothed—limbs and other body parts flying freely—as he does his victory dance around the massive mansion to the tune of Brit pop darling Sophie Ellis Bextor’s 2001 hit, “Murder On The Dancefloor.” How appropriate!

Image Credit: ‘Saltburn,’ MGM

First thing’s first—we know what you’re wondering: Yes, the scene is very much online, for the curious. Streaming via Prime Video, but also very easily searchable on Twitter X. You’re welcome!

And, secondly: Yes, that’s really Barry Keoghan, in all his glory—no prosthetics! In case there was any doubt that he’s one of the most fearless, committed young actors working today.

“I really do want to show commitment and maturity in my craft, that I’m willing to make choices if they’re out there, they’re out there,” he says to GQ, breaking down the scene. “I’m willing to step into that and be serious about what I do and not shy away from it. If it requires some crazy or wherever I’ll do it if it’s for the right reason.”

For Keoghan, it wasn’t really the nudity that had made him nervous—he had previously gone whole-hog in the 2016 drama Mammal—but the dancing. “I was trying to put it off and put it off and put it off because I was shying away from the idea of dancing. Not being in the nude—dancing,” he shares.

Luckily, he had some strong technical support in choreographer Polly Bennett, who most recently was Austin Butler’s movement coach for Elvis. As she shares with Vulture, Keoghan may not be a dancer, but he certainly had the physicality to pull the big scene off:

“He’s a lovely mover in the sense that he’s very athletic and sporty, so he understands his body in a sports way,” the choreographer says. “He wasn’t having to be a professional dancer going down the hallway; it felt more like a groove, like you do when you’ve got music playing and you’re carefree.”

Image Credit: ‘Saltburn,’ MGM

Bennett also confirms that, yes, Oliver was always meant to be naked for the climactic dance number—hence why much of it is shot from behind and the created in such a way that it wasn’t “the full-on Full Monty show for all of it.” (And, hey, we appreciate those rear shots, too!)

Related:

Jacob Elordi & Barry Keoghan’s homoerotic ‘Saltburn’ bromance is giving the gays everything we want

Jacob Elordi is especially “proud” of one of his very explicit scenes with Barry Keoghan in ‘Saltburn.’

In director Emerald Fennell’s words, the scene is intended to be joyful but also “and act of desecration,” speaking directly to the themes she set out to explore in Saltburn:

I think the thing that is effective about the song, the dance, the beauty, the complication and the detail of the shot is that you can’t leave it not kind of loving Oliver, and not feeling that your blood is up,” she tells TIME. “And that’s what this film is about. It’s about what turns us on.”

Well, mission accomplished then, Emerald!

And for anyone out there who might be wondering how Sophie Ellis-Bextor feels about her signature song being associated with such skin-forward moment of cinema, we’re pleased to report that show loves it!

The singer says Fennell approached her for the song with no other “plan B” in mind, reading a synopsis of the scene without the full context.

“I didn’t really know exactly how it would play in terms of the role it was in the movie until I saw it at the screening, but I absolutely loved it,” she tells People. “I mean, Barry really went for it. And it’s, like, the whole song!”

Ellis-Bextor continues: “How lovely for me, I mean, look, I’ve been singing ‘Murder’ for over 20 years and it’s so nice that it still has the power to surprise me.” And who can blame her for being excited? The track’s use in Saltburn has certainly given it a second life, spreading like wildfire on social media.

So here’s hoping the next time you hear “Murder On The Dancefloor”—whether on TikTok or out on an actual dance floor—you’re reminded of Barry Keoghan and Barry, Jr.!

Scroll down below for just a few more of our favorite reactions to Keoghan’s committed performance on social media:

Related:

10 NC-17 films with full frontal male nudity and where to stream them

Want to spice up your next “Netflix and chill” night? Boy, we have the list for you!

Don't forget to share:

Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...

We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock Queerty articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?

Once Monthly Annually

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated