After a successful opening weekend, Baz Luhrmann's Elvis is captivating movie fans across the U.S. Elvis is quickly making its way through the box office ranks, and some experts believe it could even give the wildly successful Top Gun: Maverick a run for its money. Furthermore, Oscar nomination predictions are already spreading.
The Elvis movie is not necessarily a faithful retelling of Elvis' life story, but it does include many accurate details. Combined with some compelling dramatic elements, these true-to-life details give audiences a deeper insight into the young man who became the King of Rock and Roll.
10 Elvis Really Attended Church Revivals As A Youngster
One of the most powerful scenes in the film (which is used as a callback several times) features Elvis as a child. In the scene, young Elvis is moved by the gospel music of a choir in an African-American church.
While the scene is an obvious dramatization and not based on a single event, Elvis really did attend revival meetings at a local church. He was heavily inspired by the gospel music he heard there, and that inspiration remained an important part of his life throughout his music career.
9 The "I Hate Elvis" Buttons Actually Existed
Not long after Elvis and Colonel Parker team up in the Elvis movie, audiences see the Parker showing off a wide array of Elvis-themed merchandise items. Among the strangest items in the collection were "I Hate Elvis" pins. Elvis' mother seems uneasy about the buttons, but Parker assures her (and Elvis) that they are a stroke of marketing genius.
Strange as it may seem, the real-life Colonel Parker actually did commission for "I Hate Elvis" pins to be made. They sold almost as well as their positive counterparts, and allowing Elvis to make money off the people who didn't like his music or personality was ingenious.
8 Elvis Really Did Have To Sing To A Dog On Television
The idea of the King of Rock and Roll singing "Hound Dog" to an actual hound dog may sound like a ridiculous piece of cinematic fiction, but it actually happened. The host of the popular series The Steve Allen Show wanted to see a more innocent and family-friendly version of Elvis than what the audience of The Milton Berle Show had seen.
The real-life Elvis didn't exactly start a riot at his first Memphis show after the television appearance, but he really did tell audiences that he wasn't going to let "those people in New York" change him.
7 The Real Colonel Parker Didn't Have Citizenship
Elvis's manager Colonel Parker was definitely a sketchy character in the movie, and he was pretty similar in real life as well. The film included several embellishments about his character, but one detail was absolutely true: he did not have U.S. citizenship.
The self-proclaimed colonel was born in the Netherlands, but Colonel Parker renounced his Dutch citizenship and started a new life in America. However, he never applied for a citizenship, and thus lived in the country illegally. His status as a country-less man was just one of many mysteries surrounding him.
6 The Real-Life Elvis Was A Fan Of Beale Street Clubs
Memphis' Beale Street was a hub of musical activity in Elvis' early years, and the movie shows him frequenting some popular clubs with B.B. King. This is another example of an Elvis movie detail that is actually true.
The real-life Elvis often visited the Beale Street clubs in his youth and at the start of his career because he felt a deep connection to blues music. Just like the gospel choirs from his childhood, the musical performers in the blues clubs were a big source of inspiration for the King of Rock and Roll.
5 Colonel Parker Really Did Have A Gambling Problem
While Elvis definitely exaggerates some of Colonel Parker's actions, it does accurately capture one very important detail: the real-life Colonel Parker definitely had a gambling problem. His gambling habits got even worse when Elvis was regularly performing in Las Vegas at The International Hotel.
In fact, Colonel Parker's gambling problem was so severe that at one point, he was reportedly losing over a million dollars a year in The International Hotel's casino. Unfortunately, this was a big part of the motivation behind booking performance engagements for Elvis.
4 The Real-Life Elvis Did Meet His Future Wife Overseas
One part of Elvis' story that the dramatized biopic is mostly faithful to is how Elvis met his eventual wife, Priscilla. The pair did meet in Germany while Elvis was in the Army. Supposedly, they also enjoyed listening to music together in real life as much as they did in the film.
The Elvis movie truncates their romance quite a bit, but the couple actually didn't marry until about seven years after they met. This was because of the rather large age difference between them, as Elvis was ten years older than Priscilla.
3 Elvis Really Was Disturbed By Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Assassination
In Elvis, audiences see that the King of Rock and Roll is deeply troubled by the death of Martin Luther King Jr. Priscilla even asks to sit and watch the memorial with Elvis in his trailer, which is a sad-but-sweet moment between the couple. In real life, Elvis was a strong admirer of Martin Luther King Jr. and his principles.
Priscilla Presley has even shared in interviews that she and Elvis would often re-listen to recordings of Martin Luther King's speeches because the singer found them inspirational. His death played a major role in Elvis' desire to sing "If I Can Dream" during his NBC comeback special.
2 Elvis Really Was Unfaithful To His Wife
Elvis doesn't go into significant detail about the ongoing state of Elvis and Priscilla's marriage, but there are a few scenes along the way that suggest Elvis' infidelity. For instance, Elvis introduces Priscilla as his wife during his first show at The International Hotel, and the proceeds to kiss many female audience members.
The real marriage between Elvis and Priscilla fell victim to infidelity on both sides, but Elvis was the primary culprit. The couple tried to make it work for six years, but eventually, enough was enough for Priscilla.
1 Real-Life Elvis Never Made It Out Of The United States
Elvis' unrealized dream of an international tour makes his death all the more tragic in the Elvis movie. Unfortunately, this sad detail is completely true. Some speculate that Colonel Parker put a stop to the tour because of his immigration status, while others believe he did it out of greed.
Regardless, Colonel Parker's choice to rope Elvis into a five-year deal with The International Hotel robbed the singer of his chance to perform overseas. Due to Elvis' untimely death at age 42, it's a chance that never came around a second time.