People are debating the best dance scene in a movie, and John Travolta is everyone’s favorite

One of the great things about the art of cinema is how it captures dancing in a way no other medium can. Sure, you can see people dancing in a theatrical production, but it’s all from one vantage point, and you will never see epically-staged scenes such as Busby Berkeley’s 42nd Street or close-ups on fantastic footwork like in Flashdance.

Dancing in films isn’t just about movement; great dance scenes capture emotion, help you understand the characters, and allow the actors to express themselves in ways you can’t capture with dialogue alone. From the golden age of Hollywood to today, filmmakers have used dance to inspire, dazzle, and surprise the audience.

But what is the greatest dance scene in film history? X user Emira Han, who calls himself a “film addict,” asked fellow users on the platform to share the best dance scene ever, and over 1.6 million viewed the tweet and 2,100 people responded. Emir chose Jackrabbit Slim’s twist contest from 1994’s Pulp Fiction, where John Travolta and Uma Thurman danced to Chuck Berry’s “You Never Can Tell” as his favorite.

The Pulp Fiction dance scene is memorable because it provides a wonderful playfulness in a gritty film—specifically, in a scene where Travolta is uncomfortable taking his crime boss’s wife out for a night on the town. Further, after making his career on the dancefloor in iconic films such as Saturday Night Fever and Grease, Travolta’s star had faded by 1994, and seeing him dancing again was a joyous and welcome return to form for the actor.

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were divine in Top Hat. His ceiling dance in Royal Wedding was a masterclass in footwork and special effects.

Nobody puts Dirty Dancing in the corner.

Kevin Bacon was electric as the boy who taught a sleepy small town to dance in Footloose.

Even though The Blues Brothers was a comedy, it had some great dance numbers with musical performances by Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, and, of course, John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as Jake and Elwood Blues.

Vera-Ellen and John Bracisa’s Tap number in White Christmas was incredible.

Al Pacino’s Tango with Gabrielle Anwar in Scent of a Woman helped earn him the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Cab Calloway and the Nicholas Brothers in Stormy Weather is known as one of the most incredible dance scenes ever.

Napoleon Dynamite had the greatest moves of any millennial.

Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner were marvellous in The King and I.

Pee-wee Herman (Paul Reubens) entertained a rowdy crowd of bikers while dancing to “Tequila” in Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure.

James Cagney, known for starring in gangster films, rebranded himself as a song-and-dance man in Yankee Doodle Dandy, for which his performance earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor.

By far, the most popular actor in the thread was John Travolta, who had memorable performances dancing in Saturday Night Fever (1977), Grease (1978), Urban Cowboy (1980), Pulp Fiction (1994), and Michael (1996). Where did Travolta get all of those moves? According to SlashFilm, he trained “like Rocky” to get in shape for Saturday Night Fever.