Jacob Elordi addresses the divisive response to Saltburn, slamming the criticism of certain explicit elements from the movie. Directed by Emerald Fennell, the 2023 film generated a great deal of buzz online for its graphic content, which includes nudity and strong sexual material.
During a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly’s Awardist podcast, Elordi delves into how audiences reacted to Saltburn‘s more explicit scenes, suggesting viewers are more reserved when it comes to sexual content compared to, say, graphic violence. As he explains:
“I actually think it shows me just how, I guess, prudish we are. When I watch that, I just think there’s far more extreme things in cinema that I’ve seen, far more graphic.
“There’s more alarming things in the top 10 streamed remakes of crime documentaries on every streaming platform. I think that’s much more alarming, the kind of horrible joy that we all get from watching children be mutilated. That’s what was interesting to me.”
Elordi goes on to explain that the response to the movie intrigued him. “I was like, here’s a piece of fiction with something just a little taboo, and that makes people’s skin crawl,” he says. “It’s an interesting parallel.”
Saltburn‘s bathtub scene is by far the most infamous scene from the movie. The moment features Elordi’s character, Felix, masturbating in a bathtub before Barry Keoghan’s Oliver sneaks in and slurps up what remains in the bottom of the tub. Reactions to this scene ended up going viral on social media.
That’s not all, of course, as Saltburn also features full-frontal male nudity and a scene in which Keoghan’s character simulates sex with a freshly mounded grave. For Elordi, it’s clear that such moments aren’t all that different to the bloody and gory violence prevalent in so many movies and TV shows.
Saltburn‘s shocking moments ultimately helped to make the film a hit. It earned a modest $21 million in theaters, but it ended up being a major viewership draw on Prime Video following its theatrical run.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a somewhat lukewarm 72% from critics, though the audience-driven Popcornmeter score is higher at 79%. Saltburn reviews generally praised Fennell’s big swings and the film’s shock value, but these elements didn’t work for some. There were also some critics that argued that the film’s exploration of issues relating to class and wealth was somewhat shallow.
Following Saltburn, Elordi appeared in Priscilla (2023), Oh, Canada (2024), and On Swift Horses (2024), and he also plays the Creature in Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, which played in theaters for several weeks before its Netflix bow today, November 7. Next year, he will collaborate with Fennell again on Wuthering Heights.
It remains to be seen whether Wuthering Heights will recapture or repeat the response that Saltburn enjoyed, but rumors suggest the film could end up being just as sexually explicit and shocking. More viral Elordi moments could be on the horizon.
- Release Date
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November 17, 2023
- Runtime
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131 Minutes
- Director
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Emerald Fennell
- Writers
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Emerald Fennell
