Austin Butler On ‘Dune Part 2’, ‘The Bikerides’ And Landing First Oscar Nom For ‘Elvis’ After Lisa Marie Presley’s Death

deadline.com:

After landing his first Oscar nomination on Tuesday for his starring role in the Baz Luhrmann-directed Elvis, Austin Butler spoke with Deadline about the breakthrough, as well as the passing of Lisa Marie Presley, upcoming roles in Dune: Part Two and Jeff Nichols’ The Bikeriders, and his goals as he moves forward.

Butler said that he was “overjoyed” to see the “daunting undertaking” of Elvis recognized, including his transformational performance as the King of Rock and Roll, which so often felt like “climbing that seemingly impossible mountain.” He acknowledged, as he has in the past, that there were plenty of “sleepless nights” for him over the course of his time on the project. “So, to be on this other side and to feel so much support, and to be recognized in this way just means the world to me,” he said. “But then also to get to see all the [nominations for] production design and costume design and editing, our cinematographer Mandy, I’m just so proud of everybody.

And the fact that [we got] the Best Picture nomination as well, just for the entire cast and crew, I just share this with all of them.” RELATED: Oscar Nominations 2023: Deadline’s Complete Coverage Among the others he shares the nom with is the late Lisa Marie Presley — Elvis’ only child, who passed away abruptly and tragically on January 12, aged 54, and was laid to rest at Graceland just yesterday.

She and her mother Priscilla were longtime champions of both him and the film, most recently cheering Butler on as he nabbed his first Golden Globe earlier this month. “It’s a bittersweet moment right now because I just wish that Lisa was here to celebrate with us,” admitted Butler. “But you know, I try to focus on how this can be a moment of honoring her.” B