Austin Butler’s Elvis vocal coach has spoken out after the actor’s speaking voice caused a bit of a stir at the Golden Globes earlier this month.
The Once Upon A Time In Hollywood actor worked closely with voice coach Irene Bartlett to nail his performance as Elvis Presley, which earned him a Golden Globe at this year’s event.
However, his acceptance speech raised eyebrows on social media, with many commenting that Austin appeared to still be in character – at least where his voice was concerned.
Asked about this during an appearance on Gold Coast, Irene insisted: “What you saw in that Golden Globes speech, that’s him. It’s genuine, it’s not put on.”
“I feel sorry people are saying that, you know,” Irene added, noting that Austin had continued to take Elvis’ voice “on board” into his real life and it could “be there forever”.
She pointed out: “Because of Covid shutdowns, he was working on it all the time and it’s difficult to switch off something you’ve spent so much focus [and] time on.”
Austin said of his apparent voice transformation: “I don’t think I sound like him still, but I guess I must ’cause I hear [people say that] a lot.
“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 [to Elvis] in that way.”
Following his Golden Globes win, Austin is expected to nab a nomination at the upcoming Oscars, the contenders for which will be revealed next week.
In Elvis, in which he played the king of rock ‘n’ roll, the American actor shared the screen with Tom Hanks and Olivia DeJonge.
Meanwhile, Baz Luhrmann - who previously helmed films like Moulin Rouge!, Romeo + Juliet and The Great Gatsby - was on directing duties.