Baz Luhrmann Shared the Main Thing About ‘Elvis’ That Lisa Marie Presley Was ‘Happy About’
Elvis is receiving many award nominations and wins as the cinema world approaches the Academy Awards. However, these accolades are tinged with bittersweetness after the sudden death of Lisa Marie Presley. Director Baz Luhrmann had the opportunity to collaborate with Lisa Marie on Elvis and recently shared what aspect of the movie made her the happiest.
Baz Luhrmann says Lisa Marie’s death has brought on a ‘rollercoaster of emotions’
Elvis is one of Luhrmann’s most remarkable victories as a filmmaker. It grossed over $285 million at the box office and is nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. However, the overwhelming joy is blurred by immense sadness after Lisa Marie Presley died on Jan. 12.
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Luhrmann called Elvis an “extraordinary” journey for many reasons, including the discovery of Austin Butler, filming during a pandemic, and Lisa Marie’s recent death. He acknowledges that no matter how he feels over the loss, it’s nothing compared to her family’s grief.
“However I’m doing, it’s of no comparison to how the family is,” Luhrmann shared. “What is so extraordinary is through the film, we all became so close and so embraced. Every day, I think about the rest of the family and about how they are doing, and yet, we have to march on. We have the Grammys, we have the Oscars, and so it’s like a roller coaster of emotions. It really is.”
Lisa Marie was happy that ‘Elvis’ placed her father in the ‘right place’ with audiences
Elvis portrays the Memphis singer as a tragic hero who was grossly mismanaged by his manager Colonel Tom Parker. While there are debates about how accurate the film is, it does paint Elvis as an incredibly talented musician whose journey the audience can sympathize with. According to Luhrmann, the one thing Lisa Marie was “happy about” was how Elvis portrayed her father and how audiences perceived him after watching the film.
“What we did well, the one thing that Lisa Marie was so happy about, was that her father was somewhat put back through the film in the right place in the hearts of people around the world and a whole new audience,” Luhrmann recalled. “So that’s maybe one thing that is in the right place.”
Luhrmann said Elvis’ family was amazed by Butler’s performance
Elvis is nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Cinematography. Butler recently won a Golden Globe for his performance, meaning he is an early frontrunner against other competitors like Brendan Fraser and Colin Farrell. In an interview with The Wrap, Luhrmann praised Butler’s performance and shared comments from Elvis’ ex-wife Priscilla Presley, who was amazed by the accuracy of Butler’s portrayal.
“I kind of thought I’ll never really find someone who can play Elvis, so I’ll never really have to make the film,” Luhrmann shared. “Because it’s not a job of impersonation. You have to be able to do the physical, the vocal, but also find the inner Elvis. When Priscilla wrote that note after seeing the movie and said, ‘I just don’t understand how he could have known the moments that no one ever saw – how could he understand the anger and the loneliness? How could he understand the silences that Elvis took?’ I think that’s probably the miracle of the acting of it, that he just lived it for so long, that he was able to meld his soul with Elvis. It’s a humanity. Everybody wants to hug that guy on screen and save him.”
