Priscilla Presley reveals the film Elvis Presley ‘regretted’ passing on

Apart from dominating the Rock and Roll scene, the legendary musician, Elvis Presley also donned the actor’s hat several times. Just like his audacious music, the ‘Jailhouse Rock’ hitmaker wanted to pursue roles that would satiate his creative appetite. Elvis gravitated towards roles that would fulfil him and augment his stardom. In a recent interview, Elvis’ ex-wife Priscilla Presley revealed that the King of Rock and Roll regretted passing on the opportunity to lead the ‘A Star is Born’ remake.

In her conversation with People Magazine, Priscilla revealed that in 1976, Elvis was offered the lead role in the remake of ‘A Star Is Born,’ alongside Barbra Streisand. However, the ‘Blue Suede Shoes’ singer turned down the offer due to his manager, Colonel Tom Parker. Parker believed that the role was “not going to be good” for Elvis. Kris Kristofferson finally led the blockbuster. As per Priscilla, Elvis ‘regretted’ passing on the film. “Barbra had offered him the part. The Colonel talked him out of that saying, ‘Oh, it’s not going to be good. She’s going to be in charge, not you. Her movie, not yours.’ Elvis regretted that because he felt he could have played that part.”

Priscilla added that Elvis “wanted to be in great movies, not the stupid movies that he did like Girls Girls Girls. That wasn’t Elvis. The Colonel did not get him really at all. That was hard for both Jerry (Schilling) and I, but you couldn’t say anything to the Colonel. You just had to keep quiet.”

For those unaware, Elvis Presley shared a problematic relationship with Colonel Tom Parker. Their tumultuous equation has been discussed in the Netflix documentary ‘Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley.’ His close friend, Jerry Schilling, recalled how Elvis once threw a script in frustration. Schilling also revealed that the celebrated musician admired the work of actors like James Dean and Marlon Brando. Following Dean’s death in 1955, Parker met producer Hal Wallis, who suggested Elvis’ name for the 1958 film ‘King Creole.’

Jerry added, “Colonel went to Hal and said, ‘What about Elvis for this movie?’ Because Elvis really wanted those types of movies. Hal went to Michael Curtiz, the director, and he said, ‘No Elvis.’ Hal and the Colonel said, ‘Why don’t you just have lunch, just meet with him?’ Michael fell in love with Elvis as an actor. At the end of that picture, it was his fourth, Elvis walked over to Michael and said, ‘Thank you, Mr Curtiz. Now I understand what a director is.’”

Parker always tried to push the singer to take on more family-friendly shows and perform at Christmas specials. However, Elvis sought bold and enigmatic opportunities. It was with his ’68 Comeback Special that aired on NBC on Dec. 3, 1968, that Elvis did what he wanted to. Jerry iterated, “The Colonel, he came from the old school where he wanted Elvis to be Bing Crosby doing a Christmas Special, rather than doing a sexy rock and roll gospel, like the ’68 special.” Notably, the special became the highest-rated show of the year for NBC. Subsequently, Elvis dedicated himself to live performances from then on and dazzled fans with numerous performances before his death at age 42 in 1977.

(Courtesy: TS)