Is There Anything Funnier Than Straight Male Celebrities Discovering What ‘Bussy’ Means?

It’s the little things in life that provide me with true comfort, particularly as the world around me has not-so-slowly devolved into a hellish pit of international authoritarianism and radicalized hate mongers on top of, you know, the whole global pandemic situation. Lucky for me, “Celebrities Reading Thirst Tweets” is a thing, which means every now and then I’m offered a brief respite from shady politics and doomsday prognostication.

A web series created by Buzzfeed, the premise of these “Thirst Tweets” clips is simple: a male celebrity with an upcoming project to promote sits down in front of a seamless backdrop, prepared to read a selection of tweets penned by some of the web’s most jaw-droppingly awkward denizens. These are typically fans who have both a huge crush on said celebrity and no shame whatsoever. Some of these little ‘love notes’ are no doubt written by women, but many of them come straight from the delightfully twisted minds of gay men. (Props to Buzzfeed for being progressive, despite this almost assuredly creeping out a few of the guys.)

These thirst tweets are never funnier than when the star reading them is genuinely horrified by what he’s just been forced to imagine. And nothing — and I mean nothing — is better in these videos than when a straight celebrity encounters the word “bussy” for the very first time.

A few cases in point: the “Thirst Tweets” videos for Rocketman lead Taron Egerton; The Good Place actor Manny Jacinto; comedian, commentator, and star of Patriot Act Hasan Minhaj; and Broadway legend Taye Diggs.

As far as LGBTQ lingo goes, “bussy” — a portmanteau of “boy” or “butt” (depends on whom you ask, I suppose) and “pussy” — is as gauche as it gets. The word itself is childishly raunchy and ridiculous, and not really our community’s best work. But that’s why it’s so damn funny when a straight guy — in this case these film and TV stars — initially encounter the word.

But the humor doesn’t necessarily come from them speaking the word “bussy”; instead it’s their confused-cum-utterly horrified reaction to it.

In the case of Taron Egerton, Manny Jacinto and Jack Antonoff, none of them has a clue what they’ve just read and are forced to ask the Buzzfeed producer behind the camera for a bit of clarification.

“What’s a bussy?” Manny Jacinto asks, to which he’s told, “Basically their butthole.”

“What does that mean?” asks Taron Egerton. “It’s their butt,” he’s enlightened.

Hasan Minhaj is initially hesitant to even say the word “bussy,” at which time he’s asked by the producer if he knows what the word means.

“Do you know what this word is?” he asks back. “A man’s butt,” he’s told … to what actually seems like his great relief.

Taye Diggs, on the other hand, plays it cool. “I don’t know what a bussy is,” he says, “but this doesn’t sound so negative, so great!”

After said enlightenment, the looks on these guys’ faces is … well, they’re priceless. There’s quite literally nothing better. But don’t take my word for it. Watch for yourself.

Here’s Taron Egerton’s “Thirst Tweets” video (the “bussy” tweet is around 2:38):

Here’s Manny Jacinto’s “Thirst Tweets” video (the “bussy” tweet is around 0:25):

Here we have Hasan Minhaj’s “Thirst Tweets” video (the “bussy” tweet is around 2:55):

Watch Taye Diggs’ “Thirst Tweets” video below (the “bussy” tweet is around 0:15):

Watch Jack Antonoff’s video (the “bussy” tweet is around 6:02):

And then there are those straight male celebrities who are in the know — stars like Andrew Garfield and Joe Manganiello, both of whom are fully aware of what “bussy” means.

“Ohhh the bussy,” Garfield says, laughing. “Bussy shaking … we know where that leads. And I’m afraid it may be shaking in vain.”

“A good friend of mine actually explained to me what b-u-s-s-y means,” Manganiello says. “And now I know.”

Here’s Andrew Garfield’s “Thirst Tweets” video (the “bussy” tweet is around 5:20):

And you can watch Joe Manganiello’s “Thirst Tweets” video here (the “bussy” tweet is around 1:12):

Thank you, Buzzfeed, for delivering small little slices of heaven to my newsfeed. And for making me completely forget — at least for four whole minutes — that the world around me is basically on fire.

my new religion: manny jacinto asking “whats a bussy”

— Kin? 🤔 (@kintoshin) October 12, 2019

Are you a fan of the “Celebrities Reading Thirst Tweets” videos? What are your thoughts on the word “bussy”?

This article was originally published in October 2019. It has since been updated.