Glenn Close Doing ‘Da Butt’ At The Oscars Was All Scripted In Advance

At the otherwise most boring Academy Awards ever Sunday night, eight-time Oscar nominee Glenn Close seemingly stole the show with an encyclopedic knowledge of 1988-era R&B/funk music, and ass-shaking dance move stylings one would not expect of a 74-year-old woman. During a quiz-show segment, actor Lil Rel Howery popped Oscar music trivia on audience members, and Glenn Close had shockingly specific knowledge of “the great Washington DC go-go band E.U.,” their membership and associated acts, and the early Spike Lee film School Daze in which the song appeared. She then actually did an old-person version of the dance move “Da Butt” that is affiliated with the song.

Glenn Close stole the show at the #Oscars pic.twitter.com/dYeKMfqUW0

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) April 26, 2021

But the whole segment was scripted and fake. Her knowledge of “Da Butt” was debunked in an LA Times Sunday night follow-up report that said, “The Los Angeles Times has confirmed that Close’s twerk-tastic performance was part of a scripted bit designed for laughs.”

DID I NOT CALL IT https://t.co/sjLzV8GURA

— Heidi N. Moore (@moorehn) April 26, 2021

Conspiracy theorists can certainly wonder if the purpose of the skit was to deflect distraction from the late Chadwick Boseman being snubbed for Best Actor later in the broadcast. 

If you are not familiar with “Da Butt,” it’s a 1988 single for a DC band called Experience Unlimited whose video was directed by Spike Lee. It spawned an oft-repeated phrase “[This person] got a big ol’ butt, [This person] got a big ol’ butt, [This person] got a big ol’ butt.” Despite being a butt-centric song, it’s actually kind of wholesome by today’s standards. 

Did not have Glenn Close doing Da Butt and knowing as much as she did about the song on the 2021 Oscar bingo card https://t.co/yJr9b6UWIV

— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) April 26, 2021

While the act was entirely scripted, 74-year-old nominee Glenn Close still made history as the oldest nominee ever to do “Da Butt” at the Oscars. She established a new record, beating all previous oldest-ever nominees who did not do “Da Butt” on their respective Oscars broadcasts, including Anthony Hopkins (83 years old, The Father, 2020), Jessica Tandy (80 years old, Driving Miss Daisy, 1989), and Peter Fonda (76 years old, On Golden Pond, 1981).