Kevin Bacon admires Footloose's popularity and admits 'it was a great gift' to be in the film

Kevin Bacon looks back lovingly as he spent filming the hit film Footloose, nearly 40 years after putting on his dance shoes for the role of Ren McCormack.

In an interview at TodayThe musical’s main cast also admired its longevity, and how it was able to garner new fans over the past four decades.

‘I like it. I think that’s great,’ he told co-host Willie Geist, adding, ‘It’s like all the things you think, ‘Oh my gosh, is it going to go away?’ At some point, you have to embrace the beast.’

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Classic: Kevin Bacon, 64, looks back on the time he spent filming the hit film Footloose, nearly 40 years after the release of the musical

Bacon, 64, went on to add what a ‘what a gift it is to be a part of that film. I certainly take it very seriously when I do it and I love that people will still come and say they’re just showing it to their kids.’

The Philadelphia native also credits the film’s enduring popularity for the Broadway musical which premiered in 1998, and has since had touring versions of the musical in the US and UK, while also having several shows in London’s West End.

‘Once a Broadway show (ends) it airs, then it becomes available to do in every high school,’ he explained. ‘And there aren’t a lot of dramas, musicals of course, where you can have a musical and a bunch of high school kids in it.’

Gracious: In an interview with Today, Bacon marveled at the film’s longevity, and how it has garnered new fans over the past four decades.

Leading couple: Bacon, who was 25 when he shot Footloose, played the role of Ren McCormack alongside Lori Singer, who played Ariel Moore

The film’s popularity can also be attributed to its music, including the title track, Footloose by Kenny Loggins and Let’s Hear It For The Boy, performed by Deniece Williams.

Just a few weeks ago, Bacon convinced his wife, actress Kyra Sedgwick, to take part in the ‘Footloose Drop’ challenge that went viral on TikTok.

Trends, set to Loggins’ iconic song, have one partner holding the other horizontally reaching into one hand and foot. Then, the pair unrolled another to the floor, catching them before they fell.

While confessing that he has no recollection of such a move being part of the original film, Bacon and Sedgwick proceed to fake a drop in their video posted on his Instagram page; although he suffered a wrist injury.

Trending: Just a few weeks ago, Bacon convinced his wife, actress Kyra Sedgwick, to take part in the ‘Footloose Drop’ challenge that went viral on TikTok

Mission accomplished: Bacon and Sedgwick proceed to fake a drop in their video posted on his Instagram page

Hyped: The couple, who have been married for almost 34 years, are in high fives after moving into the living room of their house

In the film, Bacon plays a teenager who moves from the big city of Chicago to a small town in rural Southeast Texas, where he tries to overturn a dancing ban instituted by the efforts of a local minister, played by John Lithgow.

In addition to Bacon and Lithgow, the cast also includes Lori Singer, Dianne Wiest, Sarah Jessica Parker and Chris Penn, among others.

Directed by Herbert Ross from a screenplay by Dean Pitchford, an Academy Award-winning lyricist who co-wrote the title song for the hit film Fame (1980), the film grossed over $80 million at the North American box office on an $8.2 million budget, although it received mixed reviews by critics.

Box office reception in the US and Canada would be good enough to become the seventh highest-grossing film of 1984.

A Bonafide Hit: Directed by Herbert Ross from a screenplay by Dean Pitchford, Footloose went on to become the seventh highest-grossing film of 1984, grossing over $80 million in North America alone on an $8.2 million budget.

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