How Elvis Has Been Portrayed Over the Years

How Elvis Has Been Portrayed Over the Years

Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’ll be discussing how Elvis Presley has been portrayed over the years.

Both television and the silver screen are littered with varied depictions of the King of Rock ‘n Roll, with some taking more liberties than others with the life of Elvis Aaron Presley. In this video, we’ll be taking a more in-depth look at some of these depictions throughout the decades.

What’s your favorite on-screen portrayal of the King? Do you prefer serious or funny representations?

Elvis’ station as a pop culture icon is secure, even if interest in The King generally seems to be a cyclical thing - rearing its head every few years, as younger generations discover Presley’s music and personality. Austin Butler’s 2022 portrayal of The Man is a great example of this, as Baz Luhrmann’s biopic presents a soup-to-nuts story of Presley’s life from childhood, to stardom and beyond. Butler, to his credit, puts in an astonishing performance: one that’s nuanced and measured, yet with a passion that feels barely contained.

The plot of Luhrmann’s “Elvis” may be told from the perspective of Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker, but the movie is all Butler’s, from the actor’s first appearance on screen, to his final moments as The King. What makes the film even more impressive is how Butler and Luhrmann manage to achieve a rare instance where Elvis’ mannerisms and character are captured, top to bottom. Basically, any actor attempting to channel Presley needs to get four major aspects down: The Voice, The Moves, The Clothes and The Face. And this hasn’t always been the case with other portrayals of Elvis.

For example, Val Kilmer’s cameo as The King in the 1993 classic, “True Romance,’ is one where Presley’s smoldering voice is on point, yet director Tony Scott and crew make it a point to largely obscure Kilmer’s face. This isn’t necessarily a poor creative choice, as Kilmer more than makes up for it with a sexual swagger and captivating screen presence. Val’s Elvis isn’t on screen too often, but when he is, we as the audience can’t help but stand up and take notice.

Sometimes, however, audiences pay attention to an Elvis performance for the wrong reasons. For example, when an actor decides to portray The King in a broad fashion, playing into the stereotypical and exaggerated mannerisms associated with Presley. Jack White’s cameo as Elvis in “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,” is memorable, but perhaps only due to the musician’s willingness to dive head-first into parody. Unfortunately, parodying Elvis seems to be an avenue that’s irresistible for many actors, and it’s here where sometimes those actors risk coming across as Elvis’ impersonators, rather than The Real McCoy.

There are exceptions to this rule, of course. Two that come to mind are Michael Shannon in “Elvis & Nixon,” and Bruce Campbell in “Bubba Ho-Tep.” The latter example is particularly intriguing because it dares to discuss not only the theories behind whether or not Presley faked his own death, but also the proliferation of impersonators that continue to this day. Campbell plays an Elvis who’s in the twilight of his life, but full of energetic memories about the karate chops and cape-scapades of his younger years. It’s a performance that, like Butler’s, is nuanced with a tinge of melancholy. We see first hand how Elvis struggled with fame and his lack of anonymity.

Conversely, Michael Shannon’s Elvis is still steeped in that larger-than-life cartoon character the man would become during his Vegas residency days, yet still does so without coming across as condescending. “Elvis & Nixon” also showcases Elvis the Man, a conservative individual with deep-seeded ideas about what was right, what was wrong and what needed to be changed about modern America. Shannon does all of the mugging and martial arts one might come to expect from a 1970s Elvis, but this never feels forced. Instead, Shannon’s mannerisms seem gleaned from the actor’s reported conversations with Jerry Schilling, a real-life friend of Elvis who gave Shannon advice on how to approach the role.

This notion of “young vs. old” Elvis is always something that comes up when fans discuss their favorite eras of the man’s career. As a result, some other portrayals of the king stress more Presley’s roots as a fan of blues, soul and gospel music, his burgeoning sexuality and the controversy that emerged from a then-new style of music known as rock ‘n roll. To this end, Drake Milligan did a great job playing a young Elvis in the short lived CMT series, “Sun Records.” Although the show only ran for one season, and doesn’t solely follow the career of Elvis, Milligan’s earnestness as an Elvis making his first musical moves definitely felt inspired.

Michael St. Gerard also did a great job with his portrayal of a Sun Records-era Elvis in another short-lived series, simply titled “Elvis.” St. Gerard already had some experience playing The King in two films during the late eighties prior to his experience on the show, although St. Gerard’s singing scenes were dubbed by the voice of an actual Elvis impersonator, Ronnie McDowell in the ‘90s series. Still, St. Gerard is believable as a youthful and energetic Elvis, as was Jonathan Rhys Meyers in the 2005 miniseries of the same name. The latter in particular is perhaps one of the better examples on this list of an actor getting Presley’s accent and dialect pretty close to perfect.

“Fifty Million Elvis Fans Can’t Be Wrong” was the title from one of Elvis’ many, many compilation albums. It plays into the passionate fandom The King still enjoys to this day, but it also speaks to the often spirited debates Elvis fans can get into with regards to their favorite Elvis portrayal. For many of these fans, that man is Kurt Russell, and the film was actually made for television. Horror icon John Carpenter directed Russell in “Elvis” back in 1979, and it left a lasting impression long after its basic cable debut.

Perhaps it’s because of Russell’s decision to actually go with an understated Elvis Presley that made the film so beloved by fans. There’s a clear love for the man that gets mimicked on screen, as Carpenter and Russell nail the clothes, the moves and, if you squint, the face. The voice, however, was Ronnie McDowell…again. Granted, Austin Butler may be almost the spitting image of Presley, and perhaps David Keith had something of an underrated turn as The King in the 1988 comedy “Heartbreak Hotel,” but the shadow cast by Kurt Russell’s Elvis is a large one.

The best portrayals of Elvis Presley have always been the ones that dared to delve beyond the glitter and past the time. The King’s story is inspiring, but it’s also tragic, as here was a man who often felt trapped by the very fame and fortune that came along with doing what we loved. But we also love Elvis, and we love watching Elvis. All of Elvis. From his own movies, to these biopics that we’ve discussed today, The King took care of business, and his storied life will always captivate us every time it’s brought to the screen.