Jeff Goldblum teamed up with James Corden to debut a parody of Ariana Grande’s “Thank U, Next,” which was appropriately titled “Thank U, Jeff.”
The Late Late Show sketch began as Corden greeted Goldblum backstage before his appearance on Wednesday’s episode. After the actor thanked Corden for having him on the show, the host responded, “We should be saying thank you, Jeff.”
As the men continued to thank each other, Corden said, “No seriously. Thank you, Jeff.”
The music for Grande’s hit song began to play, and Corden was transported to a pink bedroom. Similar to Grande in the record-breaking “Thank U, Next” music video, Corden was seen lying on his bed as he flipped through a burn book, which is a reference to the film Mean Girls.
The music video includes references to the films Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, 13 Going on 30 and Bring It On. The clip for Grande’s breakup song earned 100 million views on YouTube within 4 days, with 55.4 million of those views taking place over the first 24 hours of its release.
For Corden’s Goldblum-inspired parody, he sang, “First saw him in The Fly/ His face was grotesque/ Then he won independence from an alien mess/ And in Thor: Ragnarok, his performance was classic/ But who could forget the hot doctor he played in Jurassic.”
Corden continued to sing as brief clips of Goldblum’s work and interviews played and the host looked at pictures of the actor in the journal. “He taught me love/ He taught me patience/ He taught me pain/ Jeff Glodblum’s amazing,” he sang. “He’s a silver fox, with black thick-rimmed glasses/ The way that he talks will charm off your asses.”
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The host then appeared onstage at a high school talent show as he sang, “Thank you, Jeff.” Goldblum sat in the audience during the performance recording it, similar to Kris Jenner’s role in the music video and Amy Poehler’s role in Mean Girls.
“He does more than just act/ Plays a mean jazz piano,” he continued to sing as he laid on a piano and stared at Goldblum as he played the instrument. “I interview a lot of celebs/ Forget the rest/ ‘Cause I think Jeff Goldblum is my favorite guest.”
“There’s no better man at character acting/ He’s over six feet/ He’s the complete package,” he sang. Corden then prompted the viewers to appreciate a photo of Goldblum in a leather jacket.
Corden was joined by his all-male squad, and they danced to the chorus in his bedroom and onstage at the talent show. The men incorporated the bend-and-snap move from Legally Blonde into their choreography, which is featured in Grande’s video.
Other shots showed the host kissing the burn book and Goldblum embracing him as he sang, “You can bet he has tons of sex.”
“Very beautiful,” Goldblum said at the end of the song. Corden then explained that the song was a way to express his gratitude for the actor for appearing on the show.
“Consider it expressed,” responded the actor. “That journal, with all the pictures of me, have you had that for a while? You compiled that?”
After the host hesitantly said that he has not had the journal for a long time, he added, “I’ll get rid of it.”
Watch the full parody below.
