Jacob Elordi’s mom had a visceral reaction to seeing him dressed as the late Elvis Presley — just like Us.
“I think she just started yelling,” Elordi, 26, recalled to Entertainment Tonight on Wednesday, October 18, noting that showing off his look as the King of Rock and Roll was “totally [an] ego” boost.
The Euphoria actor is taking on the role of Elvis for Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla Presley biopic, titled Priscilla, which is based on Priscilla’s memoir Elvis and Me. Cailee Spaeny is starring in the film’s titular role.
“When teenage Priscilla Beaulieu meets Elvis Presley at a party, the man who is already a meteoric rock-and-roll superstar becomes someone entirely unexpected in private moments: a thrilling crush, an ally in loneliness, a vulnerable best friend,” the movie’s official logline reads, per A24. “Through Priscilla’s eyes, Sofia Coppola tells the unseen side of a great American myth in Elvis and Priscilla’s long courtship and turbulent marriage, from a German army base to his dream-world estate at Graceland, in this deeply felt and ravishingly detailed portrait of love, fantasy, and fame.”
For director Coppola, 52, seeing Elordi and Spaeny in costume for the first time was “really fun” and “amazing,” she told ET on Wednesday.
“For me, it was a big responsibility to tell her story in a way that she would feel good about,” Coppola added. “I’ve always just thought about what I want to make, but now I was also thinking about something that represented her in a way that felt accurate to her.”
Elordi’s role as Elvis comes more than a year after Austin Butler starred as the late musician in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, which was released in June 2022.
“I wish him all the best,” Butler, 32, told Variety of Elordi while attending the 2023 Golden Globes in January. “We haven’t spoken, but I hope he has a great time.”
Butler ended up taking home the Best Actor in a Drama Motion Picture award at the ceremony for his portrayal of Elvis.
Elordi previously acknowledged that he was not at all influenced by the 2022 Elvis movie when creating his version of the music legend for Priscilla.
“The, kind of, first thing for me was just kind of disabling the mythology and attempting to play him as a human being and a person, who’s given a certain set of circumstances,” Elordi told The Hollywood Reporter earlier this month. “So, the whole thing all the time was just trying to walk the tightrope between being arguably one of the most famous people in the world and a human being at the same time and being honest with the [couple’s] love.”
However, he did do “a ton of research” before stepping foot on set.
“It was all a joy,” Elordi explained to Extra on October 9. “You’re really listening to some of the best music in the world, watching some absolute classic movies.”
Priscilla is set to be released in theaters on Friday, November 3.
