Austin Butler went through a dramatic preparation to play Elvis Presley. However, it paid off, as Butler is receiving awards for his performance, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. However, the award love is bittersweet after the sudden death of Lisa Marie Presley. Butler recently shared a memory he shared with Lisa Marie, where she took him on a tour of Elvis’ bedroom at Graceland.
Austin Butler got ‘so close, so fast’ with Lisa Marie Presley
Lisa Marie died suddenly on Jan. 12, 2023, after suffering cardiac arrest. The news left many saddened and surprised, including Butler, who recently got to know her through celebrating Elvis together. In an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Butler said he first met Lisa Marie at Graceland during a screening of Elvis, and they hit it off immediately.
“I first met Lisa Marie when we filmed the screen at Graceland, and I’ve never had an experience where I met somebody and felt an immediate depth of relationship to them,” Butler shared. “She was a person who didn’t really have anything to prove and wouldn’t open up to everybody, and she just opened up to me. We got so close, so fast. It’s just devastating.”
“It’s weird in moments like this because it’s so bittersweet,” he added. “So much great stuff is happening…I’m just devastated for her family and for her to not be here celebrating with us…To get to be with her at the Golden Globes. I’ll never forget that for the rest of my life.”
Lisa Marie took Butler to see Elvis’ bedroom
While people can take tours of Graceland and see many of Elvis’ prized possessions, most people cannot access his private suite. Austin Butler is one of the lucky few who have been in Elvis’ bedroom since he died and was shown the room by Lisa Marie, who showed the actor her father’s famous slippers. Butler said the experience gave him “goosebumps.”
“That was after we screened the film, and the bedroom, you know, his bedroom is a place that most people never get to see and she said, ‘You know, I wanna show you something.’ She took me up there, and it’s…moment’s like that, we just sat in his bedroom, and up there, he’s not Elvis. He was just dad. To hear those stories, I will truly treasure that forever.”
Butler wanted to honor Elvis’ family with his performance
Butler recently won a Golden Globe for his performance in Elvis and is now in the running for an Academy Award. The actor has tough competition between Brendan Fraser for The Whale and Colin Farrell for The Banshees of Inisherin. Following his Oscar nomination, Austin Butler told The Hollywood Reporter that his main goal for the role was to honor Lisa Marie and her mother, Priscilla.
“[This role] seemed as though it was this impossible mountain to climb in front of me,” Butler said. “There were so many pitfalls, and so I just was focusing on one step at a time. And really the thing for me was just honoring the life of this man and his family. And that’s why those moments when Lisa Marie and Priscilla got to see the film, and then I first saw them after … nothing I would do would ever top that. And especially with Lisa Marie not being here with us. I just wish she was here to celebrate today with us.”
