Jacob Elordi had an eventful 2023 with back-to-back acclaimed performances in the films Priscilla and Saltburn. The Euphoria star gained acclaim along with his co-star Barry Keoghan for their performances in the black comedy Saltburn. The film gained widespread recognition and received two Golden Globe nominations.
The black comedy features multiple disturbing scenes but one of the sequences which took the cake was the ‘Grave Scene’ featuring Barry Keoghan. The scene went viral on TikTok and is largely credited to have generated interest for the film. Jacob Elordi recently referred to the scene in his Saturday Night Live opening monologue. Spoilers for Saltburn ahead.
Jacob Elordi Makes Fun Of Saltburn’s Grave Scene
When Jacob Elordi debuted with the Netflix romance The Kissing Booth, nobody could have predicted his affinity for starring in disturbing films. In the Netflix romance, he played Noah, a high-school bad boy who dates his brother’s best friend. However, Elordi gained worldwide recognition for his role as Nate Jacobs in the teen drama Euphoria.
Jacob Elordi as Nate Jacobs did horrific things in the dark HBO drama and was considered to be an antagonistic character. Though he had his justifications for his personality, the extent to which he went with his partner Maddy Perez (played by Alexa Demie) was highly disturbing. However, these were nothing compared to what is depicted in Saltburn.
Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn followed Oliver, played by Barry Keoghan, a middle-class Oxford scholar who befriend his rich classmate Felix (Elordi) and goes to his mansion to spend the summer. Horrific events take place as Oliver becomes more obsessed with Felix and tries to take over the riches of the family. In a tragic turn of events, Felix is found dead.
Barry Koeghan’s Oliver is then shown to have s*x with Felix’s grave after the latter’s funeral. The disturbing scene went viral on TikTok and was largely credited to have generated a lot of interest for the film. Jacob Elordi even addressed the scene in his opening monologue for SNL. He said,
“You might know me from Saltuburn. Not from seeing the film, [but] just from seeing the TikToks. Like this [the grave] scene…Yeah, I was the one in the grave.”
While there have been many other scenes in the black comedy that were disturbing, audiences who watched Saltburn seem to have been shocked most by the grave scene.
Barry Keoghan Reportedly Improvised The Grave Scene In Saltburn
While Jacob Elordi could happily stay in his “grave” during the disturbing scene in Saltburn, Barry Keoghan, who played Oliver, had to actually do the deed on screen. However, director Emerald Fennell and Keoghan revealed to Entertainment Weekly that the scene was improvised on the sets of the film and that they had initially planned for something else.
The scene was reportedly to have Oliver kiss the grave after Felix’s death but Fennell reportedly planted the idea of him having s*x with the grave on the day of filming. Fennell said,
“I spoke to Barry in the morning, and I just said, ‘I don’t know, Barry. I think that he would…unzip.’ And Barry just said, ‘Yup.’”
The shoot for the day was then reportedly called off for a closed set with the cinematographer, director, and script supervisor allowed to be present. Keoghan mentioned that he discovered the character more while filming the scene and did not see it as a sexual scene, but one of despair. He said,
“For me, it wasn’t about f**king the grave, it was more about I don’t know what to do with this obsession; it’s making me confused and making me unhuman in a way. It was a total discovery for him, I think. And it was sad. It was very, very sad.”
Barry Keoghan received a nomination for Best Actor in a Motion Picture-Drama at this year’s Golden Globes for his performance in Saltburn.
