The director of Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby, Baz Lurhmann, announced yesterday, via his Instagram page, the star of his upcoming film about the life of Elvis Presley.
It's none other than the American actor Austin Butler! Best known to the public for being the long-time friend of actress Vanessa Hudgens, Austin Butler nonetheless played in several popular series like The Carrie Diaries, Arrow and The Shannara Chronicles.
He was also recently seen in The Dead Do not Die with Bill Murray and Adam Driver.
Image source: Gregg DeGuire / FilmMagic / Getty Images
Big names were in the running for the role of Elvis, like Harry Styles, Miles Teller and Ansel Elgort, but it seems that Austin has delighted the Australian filmmaker.
The director of Romeo + Juliet explains it himself in an interview with Variety:
I knew I could not do this film if the cast was not perfectly adequate, and we looked for an actor who could evoke the singular natural movement and vocal qualities of this unparalleled star, but also the inner vulnerability of the artist. [...] I knew without a doubt that I had found someone who could embody the spirit of one of the most emblematic musical figures in the world.
The biopic yet will focus on the early career of a young Elvis. His relationship with his agent, Colonel Tom Parker, will also be explored.