How Chris Isaak Reacted to Stanley Kubrick Using ‘Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing’ in ‘Eyes Wide Shut’
Some songs are famous because of their use in movies. For example, Chris Isaak’s “Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” is probably mostly known for its use in Stanley Kubrick‘s Eyes Wide Shut, as well as the film’s trailers. During an interview, Isaak discussed what he thought when Kubrick asked him if he could use the song in the film.
How Chris Isaak’s ‘Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing’ came to appear in Stanley Kubrick’s ‘Eyes Wide Shut’
During a 1999 interview with MTV News, Isaak said “Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” is about wanting to be with someone you shouldn’t be with. Notably, Eyes Wide Shut touches on similar themes. Isaak revealed he had strong feelings about Kubrick, who previously directed films such as The Shining and 2001: A Space Odyssey.
“When I first found out, they called me up at The Tonight Show [when] I was getting ready to go on,” Isaak recalled. “They said they wanted to use my music in a movie, which is nothing new to me, so I said ‘OK great.’ And then they said they need to know tonight. Usually, when people push me for an answer, I say ‘Forget it.’ But then they said, ‘It’s Stanley Kubrick.’ And I said, ‘Are you crazy? For sure!'”
Why Chris Isaak never met Stanley Kubrick even though he wanted to meet the director
Isaak believed the use of “Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” in Eyes Wide Shut would have a very specific result. “In the back of my fevered mind, I’m thinking, ‘If this goes into the film, at some point I’m going to meet Stanley Kubrick,'” Isaak remembered. “And that was a big enticement to me, because there’s not a lot of people who work on that level.”
Sadly, Kubrick died before the release of Eyes Wide Shut. Isaak never net him. The “Wicked Game” singer was still happy his song appeared in the movie. “I love to think he was sitting someplace, putting on one of my records and saying, ‘Oh yeah that would be perfect,'” Isaak said.
The way listeners in the United States and the United Kingdom reacted to ‘Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing’
“Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” had a marginal impact on the charts in the United States. For one week, the track reached No. 25 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot 100. This is equivalent to reaching No. 125 on the Billboard Hot 100. Isaak released “Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” on the album Forever Blue. Forever Blue peaked at No. 31 on the Billboard 200, staying on the chart for 41 weeks.
“Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” was more popular in the United Kingdom. The Official Charts Company reports the tune reached No. 44 in the U.K., staying on the chart for two weeks. Meanwhile, Forever Blue hit No. 27 there and remained on the chart for three weeks.
Isaak never met Kubrick — but Kubrick helped “Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing” earn its place in pop culture.
