Why Austin Butler Should Win an Oscar for “Elvis” 

It’s not very often you’ll see the headline “Former Disney Channel Star Wins an Oscar,” but pretty soon you can expect to read it all over the news.

On March 12, when the 95th Academy Awards will air on ABC, a new Best Actor will be crowned, and that Best Actor should be Austin Butler for his breakout role as Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s biopic “Elvis.” 

Let me be clear, “Elvis” is an absolute fever dream of a film, one that will leave you physically, emotionally and mentally drained after watching. It is an assault on all your senses due to the sheer amount of diamond-encrusted jackets and will leave your head spinning from a runtime that’s almost three hours.

As Elvis’ manager Colonel Tom Parker, Tom Hanks gives us his most bizarre performance since he played Mr. Rogers in the 2018 biopic “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood;” it is not an understatement to say Hanks sounds like an evil gnome. But as for playing Elvis Presley, the King of Rock n’ Roll and the best-selling solo artist of all time, it truly takes a committed Actor with a capital A to embody such a famous figure, and that actor just so happens to be Austin Butler. 

Butler, who spent his youth playing bit parts in TV shows ranging from “Wizards of Waverly Place” to “iCarly,” first rose to prominence when he starred as Carrie Bradshaw’s romantic interest in the “Sex and the City” prequel “The Carrie Diaries” (his character, Sebastian Kydd, was honestly a better romantic partner than any of Carrie’s love interests in the original series, with all apologies to Aidan Shaw). His first big movie role was in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” where he played Charles “Tex” Watson, a member of the Manson family who attempts to kill Brad Pitt’s character. Although, it wasn’t until “Elvis” that Butler was truly catapulted into the stratosphere of fame, and his truly dedicated performance deserves all the gold it can get.  

The moment Butler steps on screen, it’s clear that a star has been born.

When he wiggles his hips and croons a melody, the women go wild—and for a moment, you believe it’s the King of Rock n’ Roll himself. In one scene, after he’s told to “not do so much as wiggle a finger” on stage, he does just that, much to the dismay of Tom Hanks, and instantly captivates the audience on screen and at home. In another, he sits at a piano, depressed he has to perform a Christmas special he doesn’t want to do, and we feel his pain. He turns said Christmas special into a politically charged performance that resonates with the public and rocks the world once again.  

To say that this performance was a total transformation might be an understatement.

To prepare for the role, Butler spent two years in Australia (where the movie was filmed) without talking to his family. He dyed his hair black and even went on the Ryan Gosling Method Acting Diet by drinking melted Haagen Daas ice cream to gain weight and prepare for playing Elvis in his later years. After filming, he was hospitalized for a week when his “body shut down,” showing the dark side of fame and the toll it can take on oneself when going all in on method acting.  

However, perhaps the most dramatic and apparent transformation was that of Butler’s voice. To truly embody Elvis, he worked extensively with a vocal coach to nail the Southern drawl, but perhaps he nailed it a bit too much.

Two years after filming, Butler still sounded like Elvis, leading many to wonder if it was even a PR stunt when he accepted the Golden Globe for Best Actor while still ‘in character’ with his voice. Videos have been made comparing his voice to what it sounded like before and after, and Butler even made fun of it himself while on SNL.  

While Butler’s dramatic transformation is sometimes criticized, it only shows how dedicated he was to his performance. Whereas Rami Malek didn’t actually sing in “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the Freddie Mercury biopic that won him an Oscar in 2019, Butler’s real vocals are used when he’s singing as Elvis in his earlier years (his voice is blended with Presley’s only when in his older years later in the film). Not only does this show that Butler was committed, but he also wanted to honor who he was playing. “Elvis” may not be entirely accurate, but it does feel authentic, which is something not enough movies do enough nowadays.  

Butler’s performance in “Elvis” is lightning-in-a-bottle. Through rigorous preparation and an intense commitment to the role, Butler gave one of the best performances of 2022 and he should be rewarded with the highest honor there is.

Butler has already won a Golden Globe and a BAFTA, and there’s no signs of him slowing down. He’s slated to star in “Dune: Part 2” and “The Bikeriders,” both planned for a release this year.

There may be those with suspicious minds out there, but I couldn’t help falling in love with Butler’s performance in “Elvis.” Austin Butler should win an Academy Award—it’s now or never.