Sophie Ellis-Bextor is thrilled by the resurgence of her 2001 hit Murder On The Dancefloor following its inclusion in ‘Saltburn’.
The classic pop anthem features in the final scene of the movie, in which actor Barry Keoghan is seen dancing in the nude to the song.
On the back of the film, the track has entered Spotify‘s global chart for the first time after clocking up over 1.43 million streams, and it now looks set to re-enter the UK Top 40 this week.
“Wow.. thank you for all the Murder love. Happy new year! Xx,” Sophie wrote on X.
Wow.. thank you for all the Murder love. Happy new year! Xx https://t.co/8D6Z8G0kcf
— Sophie Ellis-Bextor (@SophieEB) January 1, 2024
The singer-songwriter previously admitted she “wasn’t quite prepared for the visual”, adding: “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.
“I think it’s such a clever, funny, smart film. I really enjoyed it.”
Explaining that she allowed director Emerald Fennell to use the song – which featured on her debut LP, ‘Read My Lips’ – because they “didn’t really have a plan B”, she continued: “She just felt like it tied everything together in terms of the tone of the film and the juxtaposition of the sort of sweetness of the pop song, but also a little sting in the tail with the lyrics as well.
Yes, absolutely. https://t.co/d2ZOclx7cU
— Sophie Ellis-Bextor (@SophieEB) December 30, 2023
“I think it works. But 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.”
But when another user asked her whether, when she wrote the song, that’s how she imagined it would be used, Sophie replied: “Yes, absolutely.”
‘Saltburn’ is streaming now on Amazon Prime Video.
