Does Austin Butler Have an ‘Elvis’ Accent? Actor Addresses *Those* Voice Concerns
Thank you, thank you very much! Austin Butler is still addressing those Elvis Presley accent questions after playing the legendary musician in the Elvis biopic, which premiered in June 2022.
“I don’t even think about it. I don’t think I sound like him still, but I guess I haven’t noticed ’cause I hear it a lot,” the actor said following his 2023 Golden Globes win in January 2023. “I think, I often liken it to when somebody lives in another country for a long time, and I had three years where that was my only focus in life, so I’m sure that there’s just pieces of my DNA that will always be linked in that way.”
Austin still has a bit of the Elvis flare to his voice and he even had to turn to professionals to help get back to his old speech.
Did Austin Butler Play Elvis?
It was announced in July 2019 that Austin was set to take on the iconic role. Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, production on the film — which also stars Tom Hanks and Olivia DeJonge — was delayed. So, the Carrie Diaries alum was immersed in the role for years, which he credits this newfound accent to.
"I hear that a lot," Austin told ELLE Australia during a June 2022 interview, when asked about his voice change. "But I didn't do anything else for two years [apart from working on Elvis], that's such a large chunk of life. I'm not surprised that it clicks in."
He added, "Because I'm a shy person, and when I know that there's bits of Elvis that I'd have to click into in order to go out on stage and be in front of a ton of people, being surrounded by his name everywhere, there's triggers."
The California native explained to the magazine that he spent "so much time obsessing about one thing" that his muscles got used to the voice change. Austin joked, "It's pretty amazing. I know that I'm constantly changing. Check in with me in 20 years when I've played a lot of roles, who knows what I'll sound like!"
Did Austin Butler Address His Voice Change on 'Saturday Night Live'?
During his Saturday Night Live monologue in December 2022, the former CW star noted, “There’s people out there who say that ever since I’ve played Elvis, my voice has changed — that it got deeper, more Elvis-y. But that’s not true, I’ve always sounded like this and I can prove it. Here’s a clip from an interview I did 10 years ago.”
The camera then cut to the old video of Austin’s interview promoting the Sex and the City prequel series, which was synced to a dramatically higher-pitched version of him speaking.
What Else Has Austin Butler Said About His Voice?
Six months prior, the Anaheim, California, native addressed the questions surrounding his tone.
“At this point, I keep asking people, ‘Is this my voice?’ because this feels like my real … it’s one of those things where certain things trigger it and other times as well it’s, I don’t know,” the former Nickelodeon star explained to Entertainment Tonight in an interview released on June 14. “When you live with something for two years, and you do nothing else, I think that you can't help it. It becomes a fiber of your being.”
"Austin Butler is proof that you can do anything you want when you’re sexy," one internet user claimed. "His [Met Gala] suit was boring and he *might* be putting on a fake deep voice but I really don’t care. With a face like that, you can make those choices."
In January 2024, Austin revealed that he had to work just as hard to lose the Elvis accent as he did to obtain it.
“I had a dialect coach just to help me not sound like Elvis,” the actor said during an appearance on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. "I was just trying to remember who I was. I was trying to remember what I liked to do. All I thought about for three years was Elvis. And then I flew to London, and at that time it was COVID, so I was quarantined for 10 days. I thought, 'Alright, just pour all this energy into learning about World War II.'"
What Have Other Celebrities Said About Austin Butler's Voice?
According to Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista, Elvis has left the building. The actors are playing villainous brothers Rabban Harkonnen and Feyd-Rautha in the forthcoming Dune sequel, so they've spent a lot of time together.
"I don't know who this guy was, but it's not Austin Butler," the Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery star told USA Today in February 2023. "It's not Elvis. His voice is different, his look is different. Everything about his demeanor is terrifying."
That being said, Dave called Austin “just the sweetest guy you'll ever meet."
