Before her death earlier this year, Lisa Marie Presley expressed shock and horror over the depiction of her father Elvis Presley in the script for Sofia Coppola’s new film “Priscilla.”
via: People
According to Variety, the singer asked the Oscar-winning filmmaker to reconsider her vision for the film four months before her death in January. The daughter of Elvis and Priscilla Presley reportedly sent two emails to Coppola in which she referred to the script as “shockingly vengeful and contemptuous.”
The film is based on Priscilla’s 1985 memoir Elvis and Me. It features Jacob Elordi and Cailee Spaeny as Elvis and Priscilla, respectively, and tells their love story from Priscilla’s point of view.
Although Elvis’ rise to stardom was documented through the Baz Luhrmann-directed film of the same name, Lisa Marie had issues with how he was set to be portrayed in the new project.
“My father only comes across as a predator and manipulative. As his daughter, I don’t read this and see any of my father in this character. I don’t read this and see my mother’s perspective of my father. I read this and see your shockingly vengeful and contemptuous perspective and I don’t understand why?” Lisa Marie reportedly wrote in one of two emails that were sent roughly four hours apart in September 2022, according to Variety.
In another message, Lisa Marie reportedly told Coppola that she had to explain to one of her young twins, Harper Lockwood, that the film would be “another hit in our lives.”
“That there is going to be a movie about her grandfather that is going to try to make him look really, really bad but it’s not true. I had to explain that her beloved grandmother is supporting it. These two little girls have been through so much in the past 7 years, enduring my divorce and horrific custody battle and then losing their brother. We’ve all been drowning,” she wrote.
Apart from voicing her concerns, Variety reported that Lisa Marie told Coppola that she was set to speak out against the project and her mother publicly.
She wrote in one of her messages, per the outlet, “I will be forced to be in a position where I will have to openly say how I feel about the film and go against you, my mother and this film publicly.”
A rep for Presley did not immediately respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE. When reached out by PEOPLE, a rep for Coppola declined to comment.
Priscilla has voiced her support for the project since its inception and served as an executive producer. In a behind-the-scenes clip shared by A24 in October, she stated that she chose to work with Coppola out of respect for her talents.
“I’ve seen all of her movies. And her sensitivity, her understanding of women, she really puts her heart and soul into it. I would never do this with anyone else,” she said.
