Overview
A star of movies as well as music, Elvis Presley has rarely been far from screens. First, he was acting in flicks. Then, features were made about his story. He'll be back in the building in Priscilla, although it doesn't tell his tale from the usual angle. As the name makes plain, Sofia Coppola (On the Rocks) is exploring his marriage to Priscilla Presley from the latter's perspective.
Coppola reteams with American distributor A24 after On the Rocks and The Bling Ring before it to adapt Elvis and Me, Priscilla's 1985 memoir that was co-written with Sandra Harmon. This isn't the first time that the book has hit the screen thanks to a 1988 TV movie, but it clearly has its namesake's approval given that she's one of the film's executive producers. (Another: Coppola's brother Roman.)
The focus: the tale from when a teenage Priscilla Beaulieu met rock 'n' roll superstar Elvis Presley at a party, following their courtship and marriage. It's a well-told affair both on-screen and in the media, taking the couple from a a German army base to Graceland, with Coppola's version seeing its ups and downs — thrills and struggles, too — through Priscilla's rather than her hip-swinging husband's eyes.
In both the initial teaser and just-dropped full trailer, Priscilla and Elvis' romance rides highs and lows towards heartbreak, including their first meeting, her arrival at Graceland, their wedding, her pregnancy and being a mother to Lisa Marie. Elvis' music stardom and fame also feature, plus Priscilla's yearning to be her own person.
Playing the rock 'n' roll couple, thank you very much: Mare of Easttown, Devs, On the Basis of Sex, Bad Times at the El Royale and Pacific Rim: Uprising actor Cailee Spaeny as Priscilla, with Australian Euphoria and The Kissing Booth star Jacob Elordi as Elvis. Spaeny won the Best Actress award at the 2023 Venice International Film Festival for her performance.
Coppola writes and directs Priscilla, making her first film since 2020's On the Rocks, while Succession and Hello Tomorrow!'s Dagmara Dominczyk also stars. The movie is due in US cinemas in November, with release details Down Under yet to be announced.
And, if you're wondering whether the Presley family's story is angling for a trilogy, each with a different cast, different acclaimed filmmaker at the helm and different person in the spotlight, that's understandable. Baz Luhrmann's Elvis arrived in 2022, and now Priscilla takes that trilogy idea two-thirds of the way there. Whether there'll also be a Lisa Marie movie is yet to be seen.
Check out the trailer for Priscilla below:
Priscilla doesn't yet have a release date Down Under — we'll update you when one is announced.