Her hit Murder On The Dancefloor catapulted Sophie Ellis- Bextor to stardom 23 years ago.
And now its resurgence on the Bafta-nominated movie Saltburn has once again given her career a boost – so much so that on Friday she clinched a big-money deal with her old record label to make a pop comeback at the age of 44.
Ms Ellis-Bextor’s 2001 hit features in the finale of Emerald Fennell’s much talked about film, when main character Oliver – played by Barry Keoghan – dances naked to the song.
The film’s popularity – with the dancing scene trending on social media – meant that last week Murder On The Dancefloor was in the top five most played tracks in the world.
The hit has also handed the singer success in the lucrative American market for the first time – something that friends of the star say has ‘taken her aback’.
Her hit Murder On The Dancefloor catapulted Sophie Ellis- Bextor to stardom 23 years ago
Ms Ellis-Bextor’s 2001 hit features in the finale of Emerald Fennell’s much talked about film, when main character Oliver – played by Barry Keoghan (pictured) – dances naked to the song
Ellis- Bextor clinched a big-money deal with her old record label to make a pop comeback at the age of 44
A music industry source told the MoS: ‘Sophie has become a global star again. Universal, her old record label, have snapped her up and she will be releasing new music later in the year.
‘She is likely to be a bigger star than she was back in the day. It has come out of nowhere for Sophie and she is thrilled and really excited.’
Ms Ellis-Bextor said: ‘It’s just an extraordinary thing and it’s quite hard to get my head around.
‘It’s feeling a bit more real now, but I’m trying my best to just enjoy it.’
After hearing Murder On The Dancefloor live, Saltburn director Ms Fennel, 38, was convinced it was the right song to use in her movie smash – not least because the lyrics fitted the script of the film.
During the pandemic, Ms Ellis-Bextor – daughter of former Blue Peter presenter Janet Ellis – became a sensation after dancing in her kitchen and putting clips on social media.
It led to her making an album called Songs From The Kitchen Disco and also won her a deal with the BBC, which airs a playlist of hers each week on its Sounds app.
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