Barry Keoghan Confirms He Didn't Use a Prosthetic for Naked Dance Scene in “Saltburn”: ‘It Was All Me’

The Irish star said he "didn't really bat an eyelid" when it came to stripping off for the scene on 'The Louis Theroux Podcast'

Nov 5, 2024 - 07:44
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Barry Keoghan Confirms He Didn't Use a Prosthetic for Naked Dance Scene in “Saltburn”: ‘It Was All Me’

The Irish star said he "didn't really bat an eyelid" when it came to stripping off for the scene on 'The Louis Theroux Podcast'

Bryan Bedder/Getty Barry Keoghan in New York City in May 2024

Bryan Bedder/Getty Barry Keoghan in New York City in May 2024

Barry Keoghan didn't have any help when it came to his famous Saltburn dance scene.

On the latest episode of The Louis Theroux Podcast, which aired on Monday, Nov. 4, the Irish actor, 32 — who starred as Oliver Quick in the hit movie — was asked about stripping down for his full-frontal dance scene at the end of the Emerald Fennell-directed thriller.

After Theroux mentioned some people had speculated Keoghan might have had a "prosthetic penis," and that his body parts had been "enhanced," the Irish star responded, "Wait, enhanced? Who said that?" adding, "Nah... Wow."

Keoghan insisted, "It was all me, you know... it was a thing that I didn't really bat an eyelid to, you know, I would bat an eyelid if it didn't fit the story." 

Amazon Barry keogan in 'Saltburn'

Amazon Barry keogan in 'Saltburn'

Related: Saltburn's Barry Keoghan Jokes He Owns 10 of the Viral Jacob Elordi Bathwater Candles

"I remember me and Emerald having the chats and it started off with my clothes... she was like, 'We just need to make it a bit more ownership.' He's kind of got this mansion at the end. It's his space. And when you have that space... we all do it at home. We walk around naked, do you know what I mean? Because we're comfy and this is our environment," the Dunkirk star explained.

The scene in question saw Keoghan's character dancing nude to Sophie Ellis-Bextor's "Murder on the Dancefloor," and the actor appeared to be more worried about the fact he'd have to show off his dance moves on set than stripping off.

"So they said, 'Maybe it's better if you're naked?' " Theroux joked about his dancing in the scene,

"Yeah, we got to that place... my hesitation was the dancing. I don't like dancing, you know," Keoghan — who has sparked dating rumors with Sabrina Carpenter since late 2023 — responded.

MGM Barry Keoghan dancing naked in 'Saltburn'

MGM Barry Keoghan dancing naked in 'Saltburn'

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Despite his trepidation, Keoghan insisted he was more than willing to dance if it fitted into the movie.

"If it's required... weirdly, when it's the character, again, [it's] this kind of thing of, when it's not you, you'll do it," he told the podcast, adding that it makes sense if "it moves the script and the story forward." 

"But yeah, I don't like dancing," Keoghan — who starred in the much-talked-about show alongside Jacob Elordi — reiterated.

Related: BBC Admits Its Question to Andrew Scott About Barry Keoghan's Saltburn Nudity Was 'Misjudged'

Robert Okine/Getty Barry Keoghan at the 2024 'Bring Them Down' premiere in Toronto

Robert Okine/Getty Barry Keoghan at the 2024 'Bring Them Down' premiere in Toronto

This isn't the first time the Oscar nominee has been asked about the dance scene. He admitted he was "pretty impressed" with how he moved in an interview for Vanity Fair's 30th annual Hollywood issue published in February.

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He also touched on whether he felt objectified by the public due to the scene, which garnered its fair share of awards-show jokes.

"It’s crazy," Keoghan told the outlet. "It can be detrimental to the mind and your mental state if you read into it too much or you look at too much stuff being said."

"I wouldn’t go there if I wasn’t prepared for that, or if I wasn’t open to receiving what people want to say," he added.