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Artist News
Baz Luhrmann finds his frontman for Elvis biopic
By Chris Cooke | Published on Tuesday 16 July 2019
Baz Luhrmann is making a film about Elvis Presley and his relationship with manager Colonel Tom Parker. Which sounds like it could be good. And in a super savvy move, Luhrmann has remembered to cast an actor into the role of Presley. That actor is Austin Butler. Tom Hanks was already in place to play Parker.
“I knew I couldn’t make this film if the casting wasn’t absolutely right, and we searched thoroughly for an actor with the ability to evoke the singular natural movement and vocal qualities of this peerless star, but also the inner vulnerability of the artist,” Luhrmann has said in a statement.
“Throughout the casting process”, he went on, “it was an honour for me to encounter such a vast array of talent. I had heard about Austin Butler from his stand-out role opposite Denzel Washington in ‘The Iceman Cometh’ on Broadway and, through a journey of extensive screen testing and music and performance workshops, I knew unequivocally that I had found someone who could embody the spirit of one of the world’s most iconic musical figures”.
So that’s all nice. Filming should begin next year.