Baz Luhrmann Says 'Elvis' Awards Season Is a 'Roller Coaster' Since Lisa Marie Presley's Death (Exclusive)

ET spoke with the director ahead of the 2023 GRAMMY Awards.

Baz Luhrmann knows this awards season is going to continue to be bittersweet.

ET's Cassie DiLaura spoke with the Elvis director at Spotify's Best New Artist party ahead of the 2023 GRAMMY Awards this week, and he opened up about the "roller coaster of emotions" that he and the cast have been on following the tragic death of Lisa Marie Presley on Jan. 12. 

"I've made films and they've all had extraordinary journeys. Nothing comes close to the Elvis journey," Luhrmann shared. "Forget the discovery of Austin [Butler], forget the pandemic, forget even the recent unimaginable sadness that everyone in the film has gone through with the loss of Lisa Marie, and then you have a high of the nominations for the Oscars and then the GRAMMYs and we're up for Best Soundtrack and all of that."

"However I'm doing, it's of no comparison to how the family is," he added. "What is so extraordinary is through the film, we all became so close and so embraced. Every day, I think about the rest of the family and about how they are doing and yet, we have to march on. We have the GRAMMYs, we have the Oscars and so it's like a roller coaster of emotions. It really is."

The Elvis soundtrack is nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media at Sunday's GRAMMYs, and Luhrmann said he would be there with Doja Cat -- who remixed "Hound Dog" on her Elvis tribute track, "Vegas" -- but he was unsure if Butler would be in attendance.

The pair will be back together for the upcoming Oscars, however, as Elvis is up for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor. Luhrmann shared that the awards season experience won't be the same without Lisa Marie, but said that he's proud of the story they were able to tell.

"What we did well, the one thing that Lisa Marie was so happy about, was that her father was somewhat put back through the film in the right place in the hearts of people around the world and a whole new audience," he reflected. "So that's maybe one thing that is in the right place."


The 65th Annual GRAMMY Awards take place Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT and will broadcast and stream live on CBS and Paramount+. Follow along at ETonline.com for everything you need to get ready for music's biggest night, including how to watch, GRAMMY performers and more.

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