Austin Butler Was Hospitalized After 'Elvis' Filming, Says His Body 'Shut Down'

Daniel Mitchell-Benoit
Austin Butler at the "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" Los Angeles Premiere on July 22, 2019.
Getty | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin

Austin Butler landed himself in the hospital after the filming of Elvis wrapped up, he reports. Known previously for his roles in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and The Dead Don't Die, Butler landed an incredible role when he was cast as Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's biopic about the musician.

He poured everything he had into this role, but perhaps a bit too much, as he recently shared that he was hospitalized once they were finished filming as his body began to "shut down."

Actor Austin Butler learned what it meant to give his all to a role.

Austin Butler at the 75th annual Cannes film festival, ni a white shirt, black pants, and sunglasses looking over his right shoulder.
Getty | Samir Hussein

Playing the titular role of the King of Rock and Roll in the upcoming biopic film titled simply Elvis, Butler was very concerned about not only giving a good performance, but embodying the musician as much as he could.

He did a lot of research prior to filming.

 

"[Elvis is] such a superhuman figure, so to me, it was the curiosity of finding out, who is he as a human? And delve into studying everything I could on him," he explained earlier this year in an interview with Mojo Media.

Is it possible he delved a little too deep, though?

Austin Butler speaking in an interview with Mojo Media, a hand raised in gesture as he speaks.
youtube | MOJO MEDIA

Some people might think so after he recently revealed that his transformation into the iconic singer caused his body to "shut down" after filming.

A recent interview with GQ had him telling all about how his full embodiment of Elvis Presley caused quite a scare once the film had wrapped.

It went down in March of last year.

Butler explains that once they had finished filming, he suddenly experienced some very intense pain.

"The next day I woke up at four in the morning with excruciating pain, and I was rushed to hospital," he explained, adding that his "body just started shutting down."

Doctors diagnosed him with a virus that can trigger appendicitis.

Austin Butler at the "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" Los Angeles Premiere on July 22, 2019.
Getty | Axelle/Bauer-Griffin

He was made to convalesce for a week after he was admitted until they were sure he was well again.

It wasn't just his physical health that took a hit either, as he also described an identity crisis he had after emerging from playing the role he'd become so entwined with. “You can lose touch with who you actually are. And I definitely had that when I finished Elvis – not knowing who I was."

He doesn't seem to regret any of it, though.

At the 2022 Met Gala, Butler spoke to Vogue on the red carpet, saying that this extreme, all-encompassing transformation he went through was to make "all the people who loved Elvis so much proud."

This news only creates more excitement for the film.

Elvis is already off to a great start, as it received an incredible 12-minute standing ovation after its screening at Cannes this past week. Elvis' only daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, even praised Butler's performance on social media, seen above. The movie is set to premier in theaters on June 24.

h/t: Etalk