Austin Butler thanks Presley family as he picks up BAFTA for best actor
Austin Butler at the 2023 BAFTA Film Awards in London.
By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN
Austin Butler continued his awards season success by scooping up the BAFTA Film Award for best actor during Sunday’s ceremony.
Butler won the award for his portrayal of Elvis Presley in the 2022 Baz Luhrmann film “Elvis.”
Elvis twang still intact, Butler thanked the Presley family for their “love and for sharing with me who Elvis truly was.”
“I hope I made you proud,” he said. “This means the world to me.”
The actor did not mention any specific family members by name on stage, but speaking to press after the show Butler said “it’s been a really tragic time.”
“Grief is a long process. My heart and my love is with them always,” he said. “I feel honored to be welcomed into the family. It’s a bittersweet time.”
His comments come as the battle over the estate of the late Lisa Marie Presley continues between Priscilla Presley and Lisa Marie Presley’s daughter Riley Keough, who is the sole executor of the estate.
Lisa Marie Presley, the only daughter of Elvis Presley, died in January, just days after accompanying Butler to the Golden Globe Awards.
The BAFTA win for Butler’s portrayal of “the king of rock ‘n’ roll” added to the actor’s award season momentum. Butler is nominated for a best actor Oscar for “Elvis,” and won a best actor Golden Globe for the performance in January. He is also nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Despite BAFTA chair Krishnendu Majumdar’s 2020 statement vowing diversity within the organization, the top four main performance category awards went to White performers on Sunday. “The Banshees Of Inisherin” actors Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan took home BAFTA awards in the supporting performance categories, and Cate Blanchett won a best actress statuette for her role in “Tár.”
This was Butler’s first BAFTA nomination and win. See the full list of winners here.
The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Thomas Page contributed to this report.
