Priscilla Presley has called Austin Butler’s portrayal of Elvis “mesmerizing” — but she apparently had her doubts at first about how well the actor would capture the late singer’s spirit.
“I remember Priscilla said, ‘I know I was hard on you,’” he told Entertainment Tonight, adding that Presley wrote him an email praising Butler’s performance. “She said, ‘Every wink, every move, if my husband was here he would say, ‘Hot damn, you are me!’
“She said, ‘How did he know about Elvis’ rage, his stillness, his inner life, his complex inner life?’” Luhrmann added. “Because that’s not out there. That’s not in a biography.’”Butler, 31, has opened up about how he accessed the emotional core of the late legend's character, moving beyond a superficial impersonation of the King’s famous voice and mannerisms.
“When you first look at Elvis, he feels so much larger than life and you look at him like a god-like figure or a caricature of Elvis, and I fell into that the first month when I was trying to work on it,” Butler said during a visit toOnce Butler found out that both he and Elvis had lost their mothers when they were 23, it helped him connect to the singer on a deeper level.
“When I learned about his mom — and then knowing that we were the exact same age — that just hit me,” he said. “It was just one of those things where you know the stars are aligning and that just became the most personal thing.”Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty Images
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