Butler plays the King of Rock n Roll in the biopic.
Fans are all shook up following the release of Austin Butler’s version of "Trouble" from the upcoming Elvis biopic -- and rightfully so. On Saturday, the film’s director, Baz Luhrmann confirmed to fans that it is in fact Butler’s vocals in all of the young Elvis performances from the film.
The Australian filmmaker shared the news with a video of Butler, dressed as the King of Rock n Roll performing “Trouble” during a screen test. “The response to Austin’s version of Trouble has been tremendous but so many of you still ask, ‘is it Austin singing?’ I feel I haven’t been clear enough in conveying that Austin sings all of the young Elvis in the movie, so forgive me,” he wrote next to the clip.
“I thought you might find this very early camera (2019) test fascinating as Austin and the guys are just jamming while we test our lenses. Even before his two years of vocal studies I feel that Austin is channeling the vocal qualities of Elvis. Thank you @austinbutler for letting me share this early test to give the fans an insight into your journey. #tcb #elvismovie @elvismovie.”
Elvis’ granddaughter, Riley Keough, also raved about the “beautiful” performance.
“One of the most remarkable parts to me about @elvismovie that people may not know (because he’s done such an fantastic job) is that @austinbutler is singing all of the early Elvis vocals himself,” she wrote alongside the same video on her respective Instagram account.
“@bazluhrmann shared this clip today from an early screen test of Austin that I wanted to repost because what he was able to do is just so beautiful.”
In a recent behind the scenes video from the film, Butler shared a piece of advice he got from Rami Malek -- who played Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody -- about portraying a beloved music icon onscreen.
"He said, 'You know what? Those days will probably end up becoming your favorite days,'" said of Malek’s words of encouragement. "He could not be more right about that... I was terrified every time before going out there... But Elvis said it as well. Those first couple songs, once you do them and you realize OK, nobody's going to throw a rock at me, it's all OK."
Butler also shared how he got over the nervous excitement that came with performing in front of extras.
"I was nervous and afraid of the big numbers with tons of extras, to go out there and perform in front of a lot of people," Butler shared in the BTS footage from Elvis, which hits theaters on June 24. "I was filled with terror at that idea."
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