Saltburn had a happy ending for Sophie Ellis-Bextor, whose “Murder on the Dancefloor” just debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 over 20 years after its initial release. Cruising in at No. 98, the song marks Ellis-Bextor’s first-ever entry on the chart.
The piqued interest in “Murder on the Dancefloor” can certainly be credited to the song’s inclusion in Emerald Fennell’s comedy thriller Saltburn late last year. The 2001 dance-pop tune soundtracks the film’s unforgettable closing scene, during which Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) gleefully dances by himself, butt-ass naked.
“Murder on the Dancefloor” has since become a viral TikTok sound, backing hundreds of thousands of videos of fans doing their own dances — albeit usually clothed. Ellis-Bextor herself even joined the fun on her personal TikTok account, posting a video of herself dancing to the song in a very Saltburn-like outfit. See that below.
The renewed popularity of “Murder on the Dancefloor” falls under what we’re unofficially calling the Kate Bush Effect; as you probably recall, Bush’s 1985 classic “Running Up that Hill (A Deal with God)” ran all the way to No. 3 on the Hot 100 back in 2022 after it was prominently featured in an episode of Netflix’s Stranger Things.
@sophieebtiktok Heading into 2024 like… Happy Saltburn New Year! Xx #murderonthedancefloor #sophieellisbextor #saltburnmovie
♬ sophs awful edit thats gone viral – sophie
