Austin Butler Finally Acknowledged That Vanessa Hudgens Is The “Friend” Who Encouraged Him To Play Elvis

January 27, 2023 / Posted by:

Mystery solved! Austin Butler has finally addressed the 350-pound Fat Elvis in the room and revealed the heretofore secret identity of the “friend” who told him, “You’ve got to play Elvis.” But not being one to give up a bit prematurely, even now that he’s halfway to the mountain top with a Best Actor nomination for Baz Lurhmann‘s Elvis, Austin can now let you in on a little secret. That “friend?” Well, it was his “partner at the time.” And that partner was… Well, gosh, it must have been Priscilla Presley, right? See, it’s confusing because Austin still won’t name Vanessa Hudgens, his former girlfriend of nine years, so we’re left to assume Austin is no longer Austin but is, instead, merely a vessel through which Elvis Presley will live on forever. Or at least until mid-March.

As Austin, still “in character,” continues to stand on the side of the campaign trail that leads to Oscarville, population One Best Actor, holding a cardboard sign that reads “Graceland or Bust,” (I told you! Son is committed!), he seems to be still grappling with the notion that he can just be normal for a minute. Maybe he’s afraid people will think he’s guilty of nepotism by dick or something. Dickpotism? He’s a Dicko-baby? NM, you get the picture. People reports:

The newly minted Oscar nominee also won a Golden Globe this month for his portrayal of Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis film. Butler, 31, told the Los Angeles Times that Hudgens, 34, encouraged him to seek out the role years ago when they were a couple, and he thanked her for her support.

“We’d been together for so long and she had this sort of clairvoyant moment and so I really, I owe her a lot for believing in me,” he said.

Butler also confirmed that it was Hudgens he was referring to as a “friend” in the recent Hollywood Reporter Actors Roundtable, when he was retelling how she encouraged him to pursue Presley. When asked by the L.A. Times if he meant Hudgens, he clarified, “That’s right,” adding: “I was with my partner at the time.”

It’s like, you’re a grown man. It’s OK to admit you’ve had s-e-x. I can’t imagine the betrayal Vanessa must have felt when her foster child left the nest and went out to conquer the world with a little more than a glint in his eye, a shoe-polished pompadour, and a sultry Memphis by way of Anaheim drawl and never looked back. With nary a whiff of acknowledgment or gratitude for all the late-night bottle feedings, pep talks, plus ones, introductions, and, now that you mention it, invaluable career advice she offered him over the course of their relationship, it’s no wonder she wrote “crying in response to a joke about Austin’s persistent accent on Instagram. Which he is still talking about! In THE VOICE.

According to The LA Times, Austin says it’s out of his control. He describes it as a “muscular habit” that just “pops up” on him unawares. That’s what he says happened to him while accepting his Golden Globe, noting, “the first time I’m ever accepting a major award, and if bits of the accent popped up, I mean, what timing.” Well, Elvis, I mean Austin, wait no, I mean Elvis, no, no, no, it’s definitely Austin, sorry. Ghosts aren’t real, right? Or… OH NEVER MIND! Either way, neither of them has ever accepted an Academy Award before. So we’ll just have to wait to see which of them “pops up” when the winner is announced. Because I’m pretty sure one of them will, even if the announcer, who is usually the previous year’s Best Actor winner, says, “And the Oscar goes to … WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT MY WIFE?!” Gotcha! I, too, can remain committed to — A Tired Bit.

Pic: Media Punch/INSTARimages.com

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