Austin Butler's journey to Elvis
While researching Elvis' life, he was looking for a connection and a common thread that would connect them.
Actor Austin Butler, who plays the king of rock and roll in the movie "Elvis", has no physical resemblance to Elvis Presley, but he managed to knock everything, from the audience to the critics, off their feet. “I felt honored that they tried so hard to really get to his essence, to feel what he really was. Austin portrayed it so beautifully” - said the granddaughter of the king of rock and roll Riley Keough, after watching the film in Cannes.
Austin, on the other hand, said that while preparing for the role and playing Elvis, he felt like a "child wearing Daddy's suit" and worried a lot about whether he would be able to present Elvis' magnetism in the right way. “I saw an icon, a superhero. Those qualities are not human qualities”,- said Austin.
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While researching Elvis' life, he was looking for a connection and a common thread that would connect them. He found it in his mother. Both his and Elvis' mother died at the age of 23. Director Baz Luhrmann had never heard of Austin before casting for the film. Warner Bros., together with the director, tested a number of actors in search of someone who will be able to adequately respond to the not-so-simple acting challenge.
“I knew I couldn't make this movie without casting. We were thoroughly looking for an actor who has natural and unique movements, Elvis' vocal abilities, and also the inner vulnerability of the artist. During the entire casting process, it was an honor to meet such a large number of talents. I heard about Austin Butler through his role with Denzel Washington in "The Iceman Cometh", and through a journey of extensive screen testing, as well as music and performance workshops, I unequivocally knew that I had found someone who could immortalize the spirit of one of the most famous musical figures in the world” - said the director of "Elvis".
It was Denzel Washington who recommended him for this role because he had never seen anyone "who is so dedicated to preparing one role" before. To prove to the film crew that he knows how to sing, Butler recorded a video and sent it to the director.
“I watched every video of Elvis, I watched every interview of his throughout his career and read every book written about him” - said the actor. According to him, the preparation for the film became his two-year obsession, during which he paused all other obligations in his life. “I went through every part of his being. Starting with his spiritual evolution and the way he moved to all the other changes over the years” - said Austin.
Austin sang all the songs in the film, and his voice is mixed with Elvis', so the songs in the film sound like Presley is singing them. Austin was a star of Disney films as a child, later appearing in small roles in two films by cult directors "The Dead Don't Die" by Jim Jarmusch and "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" by Quentin Tarantino. His role in "Elvis" is his first major role in a high-budget film.
