Barry Keoghan’s ‘Saltburn’ Nude Scene Introduces Gen Z to the ‘00s Disco Bop “Murder on the Dancefloor”

When you reach the end of Saltburn—now streaming on Amazon Prime—you’ve seen some things. Those things include period sex cunnilingus, bathtub semen slurping, and grave humping. But even after all that, writer/director Emerald Fennell has one more horny treat for her audience: A Barry Keoghan nude scene. And this isn’t just any Barry Keoghan nude scene: It’s a fully naked Barry Keoghan performing a choreographed dance to the 2001 UK hit, “Murder on the Dancefloor.”

If you were in the UK or an anglophile in the early 2000s, you know this song, and you know it is a veritable banger. It peaked at No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart when it was released in 2001 and hit. No. 9 on the Billboard chart when it was released in the U.S. the next year. It was, according to The Telegraph, “Europe’s most-played song of 2002.” Sung by Sophie Ellis-Bextor (who also co-wrote the tune with producer Gregg Alexander), it’s a disco bop with a relentlessly peppy beat and cheery, infectious lyrics about, well, murder. Without spoiling too much, it’s the perfect theme song for Keoghan’s Saltburn character. And now, thanks to the movie, the song is having a 2023 resurgence on TikTok.

As Saltburn writer/director Emerald Fennell explained in an interview with Entertainment.ie, “It always had to be that song.” Fennell added, “It had to be a moment of utter jubilant triumph. It had to be a moment that made us, the audience, completely complicit in all matter of terrible things. It had kind of post-coital joy, and a sort of also camp streak, that I think this film doesn’t shy away from. So [the song] could never be anything but ‘Murder on the Dancefloor.’ It’s too good to be true.”

But if you’re a) under the age of 30, b) not British, or c) both, this may very well be your first introduction to the song. And what a memorable introduction it is. Keoghan—all sturdy, solid muscle—flits through a lavish, Versailles-like mansion, with all of his beauty on display. We do mean all of it, including one specific facet of his beauty that dangles happily as Keoghan performs his choreographed moves. (And yes, according to a fan who attended a Q&A screening, what you see is all real—no prosthetics.)

In fact, choreographer Polly Bennett told Vulture in a recent interview that she changed the dance slightly in response to just how much Keoghan’s business was swinging. “I did have to take out a couple of turns and spins I had put in because it showed just a little too much of the wrong thing in motion, which may have distracted the audience from the root message and reason of the dance.”

“Distracted” is one word for it! Is it any wonder that audiences have gone home pondering that final scene, with that particular catchy tune stuck in their head? Even if you haven’t watched the film yet—again, it’s on Amazon as of today—you may have heard the song on the film corner of TikTok. The chorus of Ellis-Bextor’s song has become a popular sound on Gen Z’s favorite social media platform, used over reaction videos both to the movie’s more scandalous sex scenes, and to Keoghan’s impressive package.

The hit 2001 song currently has over 200 million streams on Spotify, and something tells me that number will only grow in the coming days, as more and more folks are treated to the sight of Keoghan shaking it to the disco beat. I mean, after you see that, how could you not associate “Murder on the Dancefloor” with a good time? You better not kill the groove!