If you’ve been following the press for the highly anticipated Elvis biopic as much as we have, you may have noticed something. Austin Butler, who does an uncanny impression in the film itself… is still talking like Elvis Presley today!
In interviews the young actor sounds WAY more like The King than he did when we knew him as Vanessa Hudgens‘ boyfriend! So… what’s going on??
Austin recently sat down with Elle to discuss his upcoming portrayal of the King of Rock and Roll, and admitted the famous accent has been difficult to shake! He explained:
“I didn’t do anything else for two years, that’s such a large chunk of life. I’m not surprised that it clicks in.”
Two years of speaking in Elvis’ signature Southern accent is surely more than enough to cause a lasting effect for a California native!
The 30-year-old actor explained that he felt immense “responsibility” and “terror” throughout the entire movie making process which has in turn conditioned him to activate accent mode upon certain “triggers.” Austin elaborated:
“Because I’m a shy person, and when I know that there’s bits of Elvis that I’d have to click into in order to go out on stage and be in front of a ton of people, being surrounded by his name everywhere, there’s triggers.”
Sheesh, that’s some major pressure for the self-proclaimed “shy person”! He continued:
“You spend so much time obsessing about one thing, and it really is like muscular habits, your mouth can change. It’s pretty amazing. I know that I’m constantly changing. Check in with me in 20 years when I’ve played a lot of roles, who knows what I’ll sound like!”
It sure seems like the rising star has high expectations for his career! This is easily the biggest part he’s ever gotten, and he’s getting nothing but acclaim so far… even among critics who don’t think the movie is at his level!
But as for now, it seems like part of Austin’s difficulty purging the accent may also have something to do with the personal connection he feels to the late rock and roll legend, explaining to GQ recently that like Elvis, he also lost his mother at a young age:
“His mother passed away when he was 23, and my mom passed away when I was 23, so when I learned that, it was one of those things where I got chills, and I just thought, okay, I can connect to that.”
What an inneresting coincidence — it’s almost like Austin was MEANT to play the role of Elvis!
He continued:
“It’s comforting to me now, when I get in the car. I’ll just go, ‘What do I want to listen to?’ Usually I just end up popping on Elvis, I’ve never loved somebody I’ve never met more than Elvis.”
He’s still listening to him?? No wonder the accent won’t go away!
Austin’s adoration may have gone a step too far and could be the culprit for the lasting impression the accent has on him, as he explained:
“You can lose touch with who you actually are. And I definitely had that when I finished Elvis — not knowing who I was.”
It looks like the accent may be here to stay, at least for a while until Austin finds himself again, LOLz. We’ll see if it’s all been worth it when Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis hits theaters on June 24!
What do you think of the Hollywood hunk’s accent crisis, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments below!
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