Is Austin Butler Really Singing in ‘Elvis’? Everything We Know About His Preparation for the Role

Credit: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP/Shutterstock

Is Austin Butler Really Singing in ‘Elvis’? Everything We Know About His Preparation for the Role

It's no secret that some fans doubted Austin Butler's ability to embody the late Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's 2022 film, Elvis. Several other Hollywood heartthrobs like Harry Styles and Miles Teller auditioned for the role. However, after getting a glimpse of the former Nickelodeon star, 30, swinging his hips, sporting a shiny black bouffant and expertly nailing the King of Rock 'n' Roll's accent, it's clear Butler was the right actor for the job. In fact, beyond his charm and good looks, the Carrie Diaries alum is really singing in the biopic. "Music has always been a part of my life but always a very private thing," Butler revealed during a June interview with Entertainment Weekly. "It was just my own form of therapy. I knew that the singing aspect of [the role] was going to be something I really wanted to give everything I had to." And give everything he did! Production enlisted voice coaches from all over the world, including New York and Los Angeles, to ensure that the Switched at Birth actor sounded exactly like the "Can't Help Falling in Love" crooner. "I sang every day [while preparing and filming] and would do my singing exercises first thing in the morning," Butler recalled to EW. "It is really like a muscle. Through filming, I started noticing notes that I couldn't hit in the beginning, suddenly, now I could hit those notes," he added. "I was widening my range. But it's not just singing — you're having to find vocal mannerisms. That could be a little tricky." Although Butler sings all of the early music featured in Elvis, also starring Tom Hanks, Olivia DeJonge and Dacre Montgomery, his voice is blended with the real-life Elvis in the latter half of the film. Given all of the early praise Butler has received, it's clear he was born to play Elvis, a fact his ex-girlfriend Vanessa Hudgens knew all along. During an April interview with Vogue, Butler revealed it was Hudgens, 33, who first encouraged him to pursue the role: "You need to play Elvis," she told him, after having the "epiphany." Butler has since moved on with model Kaia Gerber. Keep scrolling to learn more about Butler's preparation for Elvis.

Credit: Dave Allocca/StarPix/Shutterstock

Elvis' Voice

Beyond singing, Butler had to sound like Elvis during his everyday life. "I'd hear him say a certain word, and I would clip just that bit out, so I knew how he said that word," he told Entertainment Weekly. "I created my own archive of how he said every word and every diphthong and the way that he used musicality in his voice."

Credit: Richard Milnes/Shutterstock

Bless the Internet

Production aside, Butler outsourced to Elvis lovers on the internet for his research. 

"There are so many people out there who are super-fans, who compile these websites that have the most amazing resources," he said. "I scoured all of them. I looked at every YouTube video I could find and every film that I could watch, and I started making my own [sound catalog]."

Credit: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock

The Work Never Stops

Butler admitted to listening to voice recordings of himself as Elvis while he slept. 

Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock

True Dedication

"I basically put the rest of my life on pause for two years," Butler said during a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival in May, per People. "I just absorbed everything that I possibly could."