Hugh Grant despises his iconic dancing sequence in Love Actually. So much, in fact, that he recently called it “the most excruciating scene ever committed to celluloid.”
The quote comes from Grant's appearance in ABC’s freshly released Love Actually retrospective, The Laughter & Secrets of Love Actually: 20 Years Later. In the 2003 romantic comedy, Grant played a British prime minister who falls for one of his staff members. One of the most memorable scenes from the film features Grant's character dancing down the halls of his office while “Jump” by The Pointer Sisters plays in the background.
“I saw it in the script and I thought, Well, I’ll hate doing that. I didn’t fancy doing the dance at all, let alone rehearsing it,” Grant recalled. “To this day, there’s many people—and I agree with them—who think it’s the most excruciating scene ever committed to celluloid. Then some people like it. But I will give myself this credit…it was my idea to have that secretary lady catch me. Genius.”
Director Richard Curtis also remembered Grant's reluctance to do the scene. “He kept saying no,” Curtis said. “I think he was hoping I’d get ill or something and we’d say, ‘Oh well, what a shame. We’ll have to lose that dancing sequence.’”
Grant was “grumpy” before filming the sequence, Curtis added, but couldn't escape it due to “contractual obligation.” Although it was “agonizingly embarrassing” for Curtis to witness from behind the camera, Grant's hip-swinging rendition was ultimately "perfect.”
“I’m out of rhythm by the way,” Grant said, “especially at the beginning when I’m wiggling my ass.”
The one-hour Love Actually anniversary special is now streaming on Hulu, and the original film is currently available on Peacock.
