It appears that Elvis Presley's time on the big screen isn’t over yet, although the next project set to focus on The King won't be another straight-up biopic. Sofia Coppola has an Elvis movie of her own in the works that will focus on the early romance between Elvis and Priscilla Presley. The musician's estate has apparently slammed the Oscar-winning director’s upcoming project, but Priscilla Presley herself had a more positive take on it.
Based on the 1985 memoir Elvis and Me, Sofia Coppola’s A24 film Priscilla is from the point of view of the actress during the early stages of her marriage with Elvis Presley. This biographical film will offer a different take on the Presleys than what audiences saw in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, which had Tom Hanks in a rare “villain” role and centered on that character's business relationship with “The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” This new project sounds far more interested in digging into the romance than the road to fame and fortune, with Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi starring. But as TMZ reports, the movie managed to set off the Grammy Award winner’s estate, which one official commenting on Coppola's “horrible” writing and directing. In the rep's words:
It feels like a college movie. The set designs are just horrific, it's not what Graceland looks like.
It’s clear that Elvis Presley’s estate has a different vision for what Elvis’ life in Graceland should look like on the big screen compared to the Marie Antoinette director. Each of Sofia Coppola's movies tends to offer viewers the female gaze of larger-than-life figures and unconventional relationships. Coppola has said to Vogue that Priscilla will be told from the point of view of Priscilla Presley, with Elvis and his professional career being more of a subplot. Coppola will share a supposedly authentic glimpse into how the female lead of her movie went through womanhood growing up in Graceland — considering she married the “Hound Dog” musician when she was just fourteen — similar to seeing the dauphine of France’s upbringing in Marie Antoinette.
But while Elvis Presley’s estate may paint a negative view of Priscilla, the icon's ex-wife and foundation founder herself had nothing but positive things to say on Instagram about the A24 drama.
I am excited about the interpretation of my book by the masterful Sofia Coppola. She has such an extraordinary perspective and I have always been such an admirer of her work. I’m certain this movie will take everyone on an emotional journey.
This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that Priscilla Presley is all for Sofia Coppola’s take, since it's coming from her own memoir and all. She previously gave some major praise for Baz Luhmann’s take on her ex-husband, saying the film did a great job creatively of providing audiences with a further understanding of this cultural icon’s life journey. Plus, she serves as an executive producer on the project, as revealed by Coppola early on. That said, it doesn't quite sound like she's actually seen the finished product, but still feels comfortable talking it up anyway.
Release Date: October 2023
Directed By: Sofia Coppola
Written By: Sofia Coppola
Starring: Cailee Spaeny, Jacob Elordi, Dagmara Domińczyk, Luke Humphrey, Raine Monroe Boland, Emily Mitchell
Running Time: 110 minutes
At least this was a battle that Presley was able to calmly resolve compared to the legal dispute over control of Lisa Marie’s trust with her granddaughter Riley Keough. After filing to contest her late daughter’s will in a $35 million petition, there were reports that Keough, who was apparently the sole beneficiary of her mother’s estate, felt “disappointed” in her grandmother for challenging her mother’s will. This dispute over Lisa Marie’s trust has now been settled, who reportedly walked away with a lot of money and was granted her wish to be buried next to her ex-husband at the Graceland estate.
Elvis Presley’s estate may not be all for Sofia Coppola’s interpretation of Elvis and Priscilla’s love story, but it looks like the film's namesake is all about supporting The Bling Ring filmmaker for bringing her memoir of their infamous relationship to life. You can watch the 2023 movie release of Priscilla in October, with a more specific date yet to be announced.
