Oscar-nominated Austin Butler credits ex-GF Vanessa Hudgens for manifesting ‘Elvis’ role

Austin Butler attributes his success as Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's film to his former girlfriend, Vanessa Hudgens. The 31-year-old actor, who recently received an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe for his portrayal of Elvis, stated in an interview with the Los Angeles Times that Hudgens, 34, had urged him to audition for the role while they were still dating and he wanted to express his gratitude for her encouragement.

The 31-year-old actor said, "We'd been together for so long and she had this sort of clairvoyant moment and so I really, I owe her a lot for believing in me."

Butler confirmed that it was Hudgens he referred to as a "friend" in a recent Hollywood Reporter Actors Roundtable, when he talked about how she encouraged him to pursue Presley. When asked by the LA Times if he meant Hudgens, he said, "That's right," and added, "I was with my partner at the time." 

Austin Butler calls Vanessa Hudgens ‘friend’ who inspired him to play Elvis

He did not mention the High School Musical actress by her name nor did he refer to her as his ex-girlfriend in the earlier THR conversation. "The month before I heard that Baz was making the movie, I was going to look at Christmas lights with a friend, and there was an Elvis Christmas song on the radio and I was singing along, and my friend looked over at me and goes, 'You've got to play Elvis.' I said, 'Oh, that's such a long shot,' " Butler said earlier.

"A couple of weeks later, I was playing the piano," he added. "I never really sang for any of my friends or anything. That same friend was there and I was playing the piano. She said, 'I'm serious. You gotta figure out how you can get the rights to a script.' Then my agent called and said, 'So Baz Luhrmann is making an Elvis film.' "

Austin Butler faces backlash for not downplaying relationship with Vanessa Hudgens

Butler faced criticism on social media for minimizing the significance of his nearly nine-year relationship with Hudgens. After the interview, Butler received backlash from many Twitter users who called him 'disrespectful' and 'disgusting' for leaving out the Christmas Prince star.

In 2019, Vanessa Hudgens shared during an appearance on 'Live with Kelly and Ryan' that while she and her then-boyfriend, Butler were listening to Christmas music in December and an Elvis Presley song came on. She said, "He had just dyed his hair dark. He's a natural blond, and I was looking at him and he was singing along and I was like, 'Babe, you need to play Elvis.'" 

"Then in January, he was sitting at the piano," she added. "And he's playing and he's singing and I'm like, 'I don't know how, but you need to figure out how you can play Elvis. Like, I don't know how we get rights or what we do, but you need to play him," she recalled.