‘Elvis’ Star Austin Butler Was Hospitalized After Film Wrapped: “My Body Just Started Shutting Down”

One of the most intriguing elements of what we’ve seen thus far from director Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming Elvis Presley biopic Elvis is the performance of its star, Austin Butler.

Through two trailers for the film, Butler seems to have impeccably captured the mannerisms and speech of “The King,” so much so that he’s earned the rapturous approval of Lisa Marie Presley, among others whose opinions on this topic are the most relevant.

But pouring everything you have into an acting role can take its toll, as history has shown time and time again. The 30-year-old Butler definitely went through his own rough experience, as he explained in a new GQ feature about the film.

Via GQ:

By the time the project wrapped in March 2021, Butler had given himself over to the role so much that his body revolted. “The next day I woke up at four in the morning with excruciating pain, and I was rushed to hospital,” Butler says. He was diagnosed with a virus that simulates appendicitis and spent a week bedridden.

“My body just started shutting down the day after I finished Elvis.”

The GQ story also notes that when production was halted due to co-star Tom Hanks testing positive for COVID-19, Butler took the time to fully immerse himself in all things Elvis to further prepare for the role:

He basically turned his apartment into a detective scene, à la Charlie in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia unearthing a vast mail-room conspiracy. “Just images of Elvis everywhere, from every time period,” says Butler. “I think the film would have been very different if we had started shooting at that point, and I’m grateful I had the time to let myself marinate.”

It certainly sounds as if Austin Butler gave his all to portray The King in Elvis, adding to the anticipation for the film when it arrives on June 24.