Kevin Bacon Advertise in “Today” He will return to the high school where he filmed “More than four decades ago.” The school is Payson High School in Payson, Utah, and its students have spent the past few months launching a social media campaign (#Bacon to Payson) to get Bacon to visit on the day of the prom. Students recreated scenes from the movie on TikTok, learned the famous “Footloose” dance and more in hopes of catching Bacon's attention. And it worked.
“I was so moved by everything going on there that this crazy idea made me want to come back,” Bacon said in a video to students. “I was amazed at the work you all did on this, with the music, the flash mob and the re-creation.”
“It didn't go unnoticed by me, not to mention the fact that you're connected to our organization SixDegrees.org, and trying to figure out ways to give back to your community,” he continued. “It's really inspiring, so thank you. Thank you. And I will come. I must come!”
Bacon's visit will be notable for several reasons. This year marks the 40th anniversary of “Footloose,” which starred Bacon as a Chicago teen who moves to a small town and confronts the local minister in an attempt to overturn a ban on dancing, so it's fitting that Bacon is back on top. School to celebrate four decades of film. He filmed “Footloose” in the summer of 1983. Payson High School will also be moving to a new building after the school year, meaning this is the last chance Bacon will have to attend the prom day at the school where “Footloose” was filmed. .
“Footloose” turned Bacon into a bona fide movie star and teen sensation, but he kept talking Podcrushed podcast. Last year, that path collided with his original aspirations as a performer. Bacon had no idea he was auditioning for a “dance movie” when he auditioned for the role of Ren McCormack.
“When I did the dance movie, I wasn't a dancer. I wasn't trained to dance,” Bacon said. “To be honest, I didn't really understand that it was a dance movie. I thought it was just a movie, and then, when they would point out that there was dancing, I would just wake up.
“When I became a pop star, the last thing I wanted to be was a pop star,” Bacon continued. “I'd already gone into 'I want to be Dustin Hoffman or Meryl or John Cazale or De Niro'. I want to work with Scorsese. I want to play Chekhov.' You know what I mean? I was very interested in my idea of a serious actor, and suddenly I had this “The thing is, he wasn't a serious actor at all. So I turned him down completely. I tried to sabotage that piece of myself and my popularity.”
Bacon would learn to embrace “Footloose” over the years, and now rarely misses an opportunity to pay tribute to one of his most enduring roles. When the SAG-AFTRA strike ended last fall, for example, Bacon posted a viral video recreating the “Footloose” dance to celebrate the actors’ victory.
Watch Bacon's full announcement to students below.
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