It seems 2026 is the gift that keeps on giving, because Cillian Murphy appearing in a Taylor Swift music video was the last thing we expected.
The Peaky Blinders star is one of several famous faces making a cameo in the pop star’s new vid, which marks the release of Opalite as the second single from her chart-topping album, The Life of a Showgirl.
Taylor, 36, dropped the music video today, and, in typical T. Swift style, it has an incredible backstory.
Last October, the Grammy-winning artist appeared on one of her ‘favourite shows’, The Graham Norton Show, to promote her 12th studio album, sitting on the iconic red sofa alongside an eclectic mix of celebrities.
These included Irish actor Cillian, plus Lewis Capaldi, Domhnall Gleeson, Greta Lee, and Jodie Turner-Smith – and it was during this interview that Taylor had the lightbulb moment of creating her own Avengers Assemble moment by casting each one in her next project.
Writing on social media this afternoon, she recalled how Harry Potter star Domhnall ‘made a light-hearted joke about wanting to be in one of [her] music videos’, which led her to be ‘instantly struck with an idea’.
‘I had this thought that it would be wild if all of our fellow guests on the Graham Norton show that night, including Graham himself, could be a part of it too,’ she penned, describing the broadcaster as ‘insanely charismatic and loveable’.
‘Like a school group project but for adults and it isn’t mandatory. To my delight, everyone from the show made the effort to time travel back to the 90s with us and help with this video.’
She added that she ‘got ridiculously lucky with the group [she] was paired with, as they are ‘all people whose work [she’s] admired from afar’.
Taylor self-directed the nearly six-minute video, in which she and Domnhall play love interests.
The retro video for the infectious pop tune, inspired by Taylor’s romance with Travis Kelce, sees the Blank Space hitmaker don a brunette wig as she transports fans back through the decades.
Its plot centres around a magical spray called, you guessed it, Opalite, which turns everything miserable into something wonderful, whether it be friendships or dead romances.
For Taylor, it’s her pet rock, with which she plays in the park, works out in her living room, and performs karaoke at a bar.
And for Domhnall, it’s his pet cactus, which sleeps next to him in bed, dines out with him, and accompanies him to play snooker – while he treats the plant with affection, it, of course, pricks him repeatedly.
So, upon seeing an advertisement for the Opalite spray (a commercial narrated by Cillian), he uses it on his inanimate object, while Taylor sprays herself, seemingly having viewed herself as the issue in the duo.
Taylor is then transported into Domhnall’s living room, and they strike up a relationship, embracing one another’s weird quirks (specifically with some funky poses in a photoshoot conducted by songwriter Lewis) and proving to be a perfect match.
So perfect, in fact, that when talk show legend Graham pops up in a mall (Whitgift Centre in Croydon) offering free samples of ‘Nope-alite’, which reverses the magic, Domhnall leaps to throw it away before it can touch Taylor, keen to protect what they have.
Having been successful, the music video ends with the pair sporting sparkly tracksuits (in the colour scheme of Taylor’s album artwork, naturally) and performing in a dance competition.
Despite failing to impress the judges with their, ahem, unique choreography, Taylor and Domhnall end on a high, hugging one another in celebration.
As the credits roll, the names of each star appear alongside footage of the Graham Norton episode that serendipitously brought them together.
Closing out the short film, Cillian’s quote is reused, in which he pokes fun at Domnhall’s dancing.
‘I’m hoping to get in a Taylor Swift music video,’ he retorts cheekily, at which point her expression instantly changes, and fans witness the epiphany in real time.
Following the video’s release, the internet exploded with excited reactions and memes, joking that Domhnall’s quip made for the ‘quickest job interview ever’ without him even realising he had been hired.
‘you know she’s the IT girl when even cillian murphy comes out of his cave to be in a silly little project’, wrote @fireplacesashes on X.
@psclskies added: ‘cillian murphy in taylor swift’s music video was something i never knew i’d say’.
Plenty of others poked fun at previous online discourse that claimed Cillian ‘hated’ Taylor for his deadpan reaction when she showcased her glittering engagement ring next to him on the sofa.
‘All the people who were SOOO sure Cillian Murphy HATED Taylor are looking so dumb rn’, mocked @g0ld0rush.
Swifties further declared it one of the star’s most ‘brilliant’ videos, loving the message it sends of finding a soulmate who will love you for your goofiness.
‘from the anti-hero music video where she bleeds glitter while grappling with the cruel critiques of society, to the opalite music video where she and her partner proudly wear it on their faces to perform. beaming with joy, even when the jury’s quite unsatisfied… what a narrative’, @drewgirlevil wrote.
‘In the Opalite video, the woman in the commercial and “Lonely Man” spray Opalite on their partners. Taylor is the only one who sprays it on herself. Is she saying her life finally improved when she stopped trying to fix Joe and focused on herself? Taylor, you genius’, noted @bejeweledpaige, referring to her split from boyfriend of six years Joe Alwyn.
‘That entire mv is just find someone who matches your freak and weirdness levels and I’ve never been happier for my girl’, agreed @Valistryingg.
Opalite becoming an official single follows The Fate of Ophelia, the lead track from the album, which hit number one in the UK and became the fastest-selling album in history in the US.
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