If this Sunday he wins the Oscar for best actor for his spectacular work in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis, it will undoubtedly be an award for dedication. It is that, as he explains in this interview that he gave as soon as he received the Golden Globe in the drama category at the beginning of this year, the 31-year-old from Los Angeles who began his career in front of the cameras at 14 in a Nickelodeon series and He also participated in Hannah Montana, his transformation into the legendary singer was the result of intense preparation. Although he also won the Bafta and numerous minor awards, Austin Butler will have to do with Brendan Fraser, who has just won the actors union, a key award for this category, and the Critics Choice.
Not many Disney Channel or Nickelodeon stars win a Golden Globe or compete for a best actor Oscar. What was the process like to get here?
It was not easy. I remember going to so many auditions and never getting booked at all, which all helps make me feel particularly grateful for everything I'm going through right now. The Golden Globe thing was incredible. Being in that room full of all those people that I have always admired was very important to me. I also received the award in front of the Presleys, who have welcomed me as part of the family in a truly beautiful way. I will be eternally grateful to them for providing me with this space in which I somehow tried to capture the essence of this man who is so important to them and whom they truly adore.
There aren't many people more famous than Elvis. Did the task of playing him initially scare you?
Clear. I remember all the feelings I had when we were making the film, the terror that it wouldn't turn out well. I thought everyone was going to hate me. With the number of Elvis fans in the world, the obstacles that came my way sometimes made the mission seem impossible.
How difficult was it to prepare for the role?
It was very complicated. I knew what I was up against the moment Baz gave me the part. I spent 5 months working with him and then we did a camera test. A whole week went by and I still didn't know if he got the part or not. And during those days, I began to think about how hard it would be if they gave it to me, and that, even if I didn't get it, I had spent 5 months working with one of my favorite directors. At the same time, it was clear to me that if the chosen one was me, he was going to have to climb Everest and that I was going to have to put myself to work immediately. As soon as they told me that the role was mine, I called my singing teacher and pronunciation teacher and that's what I did. Luckily I had a year and a half to prepare.
It must have been exhausting...
It all happened by putting my life on hold for two years, and absorbing everything I could. I got carried away by obsession. I separated his life into periods of time where I could notice the differences in how his voice and movements were changing. During all that time I studied him and tried to find his humanity as much as I could, because that was the most difficult thing. We see Elvis as an icon and the hard part was putting all of that aside and finding the human nature of him that was so much deeper than everything else. That was really fascinating to me, and the chance to explore it was something I really enjoyed.
What would you say was the biggest challenge in playing him?
At first I had unrealistic expectations, believing that if I worked hard enough, I could make my face look like Elvis. That my eyes could look exactly like his and the audience wouldn't be able to tell the difference. But at a certain point, I realized that this was going to be like going to the wax museum. And that the most important thing was to show what his soul was like. Little by little I realized that I had to be as specific as possible. And that amounted to endless research. For example, I watched a second of one of his performances over and over again, looking at what his eyes were doing. He paid attention to the angle at which he put his head, or what he did with his hand. I tried to see what exactly he did and then practice it until he came naturally to me. And then the really difficult thing was being there on the set and having it feel like it was the first time something had happened, that it was something spontaneous and that person was alive, not forgetting the reasons why they were moving in a certain way or why did he speak that way? And that meant finding the inner self of him. At the same time, it was like keeping a dozen saucers spinning in the air because you always have to go back to the specifics.
Do people keep telling you that you captured Elvis's way of speaking?
Yes, but it's something I don't think about anymore. I really don't think it sounds like him, but maybe it's true because it's something I hear often. The truth is that I spent three years in which speaking like Elvis was the only axis of my life. And in that sense I suppose there are parts of my DNA that will always be linked to it in that way.
What advice did you get from Elvis's family?
There was no advice, what I received in a certain way was his blessing, which was something very important to me...
