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CINEMA FEATURE

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Austin Butler chats with STACK about taking on the daunting role of Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s dazzling new feature, Elvis . Words Gill Pringle

M uch has been written about Austin Butler’s portrayal of The King since the Cannes premiere of Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis , but there’s only one opinion that matters to the actor – the resounding thumbs up from Elvis Presley’s widow, Priscilla Presley. “That was the most moving thing to learn, and it really just made my heart soar because ultimately that's the review that matters to me – if his family is happy, if Priscilla, who knew him arguably better than anybody else, feels positive,” says Butler, who recently met with Priscilla at NewYork’s glamorous Met Gala. “I don't want to speak for her, but if she had this certain positive experience watching it and said really kind things, that's all that I can hope for, you know?” After attending a private screening with director Baz Luhrmann, Priscilla took to Facebook to write, “Austin Butler, who played Elvis, is outstanding… he knew he had big shoes to fill.” “I feel such a relief,” Butler tells STACK . “Because I just want to make her proud and to make his family proud, and I want to do them

in such a beautiful way. And she was such a great scene partner and friend to me during that entire process. I'm hugely grateful to her,” he says. Playing The King has certainly had surprising effects on Butler – who shares an uncanny resemblance to Elvis in the film – and now he finds that he can’t stop talking like Elvis, using his distinctive Southern drawl. “At this point, I keep asking people, ‘Is this my voice?’” he says. “Certain things trigger it. When you live with something for two years, and you do nothing else, I think you can’t help it. It becomes a fibre of your being.” As expected from Luhrmann, Elvis is not a generic biopic, the director choosing instead to focus on the relationship between Elvis and Colonel Tom Parker, portrayed by Tom Hanks, who also serves as the film’s narrator. Butler was impressed by the filmmaker’s unique approach. “I think Baz is such an incredible filmmaker and storyteller, and an amazing human being on top of all that. I have so much faith in him and I think the way that he approached this is really brilliant and unconventional – a really exciting way

Baz Lurhmann and Austin Butler on the set

justice and do him justice. And that goes for everybody who loves him around the world; I want all of them to feel his essence and feel like we did him justice." With Australia’s own Olivia DeJonge portraying Priscilla in Elvis , Butler was immediately enchanted with the actress. “She's such an intelligent and empathetic person and so smart. And she approached playing Priscilla with such grace, strength and wisdom; she really embodied that in Priscilla

JULY 2022

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