More Actors Have Played Priscilla Presley Than You Likely Realized
The number of television and movies surrounding the King of Rock and Roll is too many to count, but the same cannot be said for his iconic ex-wife, Priscilla. Meeting when she was only 14 years old, she and Elvis Presley were connected until his death. Though the two divorced in 1973, Priscilla maintains that the two remained close. Director Sofia Coppola was determined to explore this complex relationship in her Priscilla biopic, starring Cailee Spaeny.
"It was really important that it felt that Priscilla felt her story was represented in a way that was true to her," Coppola told Entertainment Weekly about the film. "Priscilla" is not the first time the character appears on film, though most movies depicting the relationship focus on Elvis' meteoric rise and less on his private life. Season Hubley was the first to play the role in John Carpenter's long-forgotten television film, "Elvis," released just two years after the musician's death. Susan Walters was cast as Priscilla in the first adaptation of the memoir "Elvis & Me" in 1988. In Baz Luhrmann's creative 2022 film and the 2005 movie for television — both entitled "Elvis" — the role goes to Olivia DeJonge and Antonia Bernath, respectively. In most portrayals, Priscilla functions as just the woman behind the man. The 2023 film directed by Coppola, however, gives depth and nuance to the real-life icon unseen before.
Priscilla goes to new depths
Sofia Coppola's "Priscilla" has the benefit of not focusing on the fame surrounding Elvis Presley, meaning it can tell a more personal story. Adapted from Priscilla Presley's memoir, the film centers around the character's isolation and loneliness during the relationship. Because it largely takes place behind closed doors, "Priscilla" depicts Elvis in a different light. Instead of Baz Luhrmann's take, which glosses over Priscilla's age, Coppola's version shows the good with the bad.
"I definitely wanted to have all the fun and excitement and glamor that [Priscilla] experienced, and also the hard part of a complex relationship in being with an artist that was struggling," Coppola noted in an Entertainment Weekly roundtable. The content includes Elvis throwing a chair that almost hits Priscilla and molding her style to better fit his tastes. While many fans may balk at how the couple is represented, the film's goal is to be an honest portrayal.
Jacob Elordi, who plays Elvis in the film, also acknowledged in the video that the most important aspect was not just to show the infamously toxic relationship but to depict the complexities of the two characters, both good and bad. "Priscilla" is in a sense a character study wrapped up in a marriage drama, making the film arguably the most careful and best representation of the couple's life together.