An actor is detailing an iconic dance scene that had him reaching for the vomit bag. We're talking about Jon Heder and the cult classic film Napoleon Dynamite.
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Speaking with Entertainment Tonight, the actor detailed the behind-the-scenes for the iconic dance scene from the film. It featured the actor jamming to "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai.
"I kicked everybody out," he reflected. "It was like shooting my first love scene. I was nervous. I was like, 'I want this to be good, and what's the point of having an audience when it's all on me?' I just kicked non-essential, you know, members of the cast and crew out."
According to Heder, he freestyled the whole dance scene. Director Jared Hess asked him to dance in the film.
Iconic Dance Scene
"He was like, 'Jon, you like to dance?' I'm like, 'Yeah, sure.' He's like, 'Can we put it in the movie? I want it to be the climax of the movie. Everything rides on that, so it's got to be sweet,'" Heder recalled. "I was like, 'Let's do it.' "
Unfortunately for the actor, the dance scene left him feeling like he had to puke. Apparently, he got too hot in the scene.
"I danced until I was ready to puke, and then I'm like, 'Give me some water. You guys, I'm dying here,'" he said.
The actor also apparently dealt with a lot of pressure to get it just right.
"They were like, 'Okay, we're going to have you dancing in the movie as the climax. This is going to make or break the film.' It was a lot of pressure. I was like, 'Oh, crap!' This isn't just a silly little scene," he said. "This is the moment where everything comes, and he's making the sacrifice for his friend."
"That's the whole theme of the movie. Everything leads up to this," he continued. "Napoleon's been this loser. This has to be the moment where he lands a victory. He gets up there, and it's quiet: no reaction from the audience."
He got up there and just winged it.
