Tom Hanks, Austin Butler-starrer Elvis to premiere at Cannes Film Festival 2022

Photo: Warner Bros/ People

Elvis will be at Cannes Film Festival this May. Australian director, screenwriter and producer Baz Luhrmann's movie will premiere at the 75th edition of the Festival on the picturesque Riviera that runs from 17 to 28 May. 

Along with Luhrmann, Austin Butler (whom we saw in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), the celebrated Tom Hanks (Sully, Toy Story 4, News of the World) and Olivia DeJonge (Stray Dolls, Josie and Jack, The Visit) will attend the film premiere. It is not yet clear where Elvis would be slotted.

Butler will essay the iconic Elvis Presley. Dubbed as the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis died in 1977. His energetic songs and sexually charged dancing style were the rage among the young and the old. In fact, it is commonly believed that Indian actor Shammi Kapoor copied Presley's style as well.

While Hanks portrays Presley's music manager, Colonel Tom Parker, DeJonge will be Priscilla Presley.

The movie explores the life and music of Elvis Presley, seen through the prism of his complicated relationship with his manager, Colonel Parker. The Festival highlighted: "The story delves into the complex dynamic between Presley and Parker spanning over 20 years, from Presley's rise to fame to his unprecedented stardom, against the backdrop of the evolving cultural landscape and the loss of innocence in America. Central to that journey is one of the most significant and influential people in Elvis' life, Priscilla Presley."

Elvis, produced by Bazmark and The Jackal Group, will open in North America on June 24 and in the rest of the world on June 22.

Luhrmann made history at the Cannes Festival by being the only director to show two feature films at the opening with Moulin Rouge! in 2001, which ran in Competition, and The Great Gatsby in 2013. In 1992, he became a sensation at the 45th edition of the Festival with his debut feature, Strictly Ballroom, screened in the A Certain Regard section.

While Australian actor Nicole Kidman, made huge waves as Satine in Moulin Rouge, a hauntingly lovely musical, Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby proved to be the darling of the Cannes crowds.