The reality, however, was different, something that piqued Coppolas curiosity.
DEADLINE: How did this story come to you?
I remember it had this great cover.
Priscelladirector Sophia Coppola.Andrew Zaeh exclusively for Deadline
The original cover is mass paperback with a heart-shaped frame and the words,Elvis and Me.
It was something Id never done, and it was so Americana.
The themes resonated with me again, and I kept thinking about how relatable it was.
DEADLINE: When did it become your next project?
It was a five-hour TV thing that kind of fell apart.
So, when I picked this up again I was ready for a palette change.
It was something that I felt I just knew how to do.
It was in my world, but it was still challenging.
I had no idea she was in high school when she started living at Graceland.
DEADLINE: Its mad.
But as you lay out, its also kind of weirdly understandable.
The aura and allure that Elvis Presley held was…
COPPOLA: Irresistible.
There werent as many stars back then as today.
The idea of his fame was so overwhelming.
I mean, I tried to be sensitive with all of the characters.
Im looking at the parents point of view, but really looking through her eyes.
Youd think you were special, and really sophisticated and smart.
You wouldnt see something that might be inappropriate.
Its so hard to fathom that her first kiss was Elvis Presley.
DEADLINE: Meeting Priscilla, what did you make of how shed processed it all over the years?
She doesnt look back on the experience in any kind of damaging way.
She had a full relationship with him, they were married, and they had a child.
She still looks at it as the great love of her life.
I was impressed she found the strength to leave him and find her own way.
For some people, it would be too hard to get away from that.
I can understand how alluring itd be for someone to say, Come into my world.
As opposed to trying to figure out your identity on your own, such a hard journey.
I really tried hard to translate it just as she expresses the experience.
DEADLINE: Youre not didactic, but you dont condone anything either.
You leave it up to us.
COPPOLA: I do like movies where things arent all spelled out.
I know youre often asked how your father shapes your worldview and your filmmaking.
But I wonder how youd characterize your mothers impact?
COPPOLA: She definitely made a big impact.
That resonated with the kind of expectation of my moms generation.
My mom is more of a quiet observer, which I think Ive taken from her into my work.
I think that comes through; that aspect of her personality, or what Ive inherited from her.
That side of myself is deeply connected to her.
She also exposed us to contemporary art that she was into, and showed us things.
DEADLINE: You touched on meeting Priscilla.
You obviously werent able to do that when you set out to makeMarie Antoinette.
How did that conversation go?
COPPOLA: It really was the first time Ive ever had that experience.
It was nerve-wracking and it felt like a responsibility.
And she definitely filled in details that helped me tell her story.
Shes very private, although in the book she reveals personal things.
So, it was a sort of balance.
I never wanted to pry, but I wanted to get some personal detail from her.
DEADLINE: You received an email from the late Lisa Marie Presley before production began.
She died four months later, so never saw the movie.
What went through your mind when those emails came?
COPPOLA: I was really stunned to hear that, a couple of weeks before shooting.
I felt like it was something between the family that I had no idea about.
I felt like it was between them.
And of course, I didnt want to do anything that was going to make anyone uncomfortable.
The book had been out for decades by then.
I admire him, and I wanted to show the private side, but it is Priscillas story.
DEADLINE: Did it change your approach at all?
I felt like I was really focused on bringing her story to light.
I would never want to intrude on a family.
I was always planning to approach it with sensitivity, because thats just the way I do things.
COPPOLA: Yeah, my music supervisor Randall [Poster] was like, I still love Elvis.
The point was never to take him down.
It was to tell her story in a truthful way.
I thought I learned more about him as an artist and where his struggles came from.
DEADLINE: Were there certain areas of the story that were harder to navigate than others?
The love is always there, and you feel it in the way she tells the story.
Part of it was casting Jacob Elordi, who is so charming and lovable.
Thats how people describe Elvis.
I felt empathy that she explained where his struggles were coming from and his artistic frustrations.
DEADLINE: You mentioned Jacob; I hadnt been familiar with Cailees work before this movie.
COPPOLA: I hadnt seen much myself.
Im so glad my casting people told me about Cailee, and so I watched her inMare of Easttown.
She made a real impression, but its another thing to carry a whole movie.
When I met Cailee in person, I found her to be thoughtful and sensitive.
And then talking to Kirsten Dunst helped, because they had just worked together.
Kirsten said how talented she was and how great she was to work with.
I felt I could embark on this with her by my side.
But casting Elvis felt impossible too.
Nobody looks like Elvis.
Jacobs charisma and sensitivity was important, because thats how Priscilla described him when she first met him.
He was in a vulnerable state, wanting to be a serious actor.
DEADLINE: Did you feel the breath of Baz LuhrmannsElvison your back?
Its just a totally different kind of movie.
Its like, OK, and then next year you get to hear Priscillas story.
Maybe its like enough time has passed [to examine this story].
Its such a big part of our history.
DEADLINE: Cailee and Jacob feel invested in the story theyre telling.
Is it important for you to create space for your actors to feel that sense of investment?
That theyre not playing roles but collaborating in what youre creating?
I know that theyre putting their necks on the line, and Im just there to help.
Were all kind of in it together.
And we were all taking on something ambitious and scary and just all jumping in together.
With Jacob, I didnt want a caricature.
DEADLINE: How much joy did you find in the Americana of it all?
Working with the art department and the costumes and making this vivid world.
And we had a lot of movie magic.
I think that inspires everyone to come together.
COPPOLA: I wanted it to feel authentic, and in fact Priscilla said that we got it right.
It looked right to her, so Im glad about that.
But then our whole team was like, Were not making a documentary.
We could open ourselves to interpretation while just staying within this world thats believable.
We have clues that there were some padded doors.
They were maybe from another era, but we built on that.
So, we made the bed extra tall and had this black velvet bedspread.
Its always taking cues from her and her emotional state; the impression of this place through her eyes.
There was kind of anAlice in Wonderlandfeeling of her going into this world.
A fairytale that sort of starts melting.
And it felt so exotic to me.
It wasnt really my world that I grew up in at all.
So, I think it has an interesting appeal because its so American.
Id say it was pretty exotic to most of us.
Elviss tastes in interior design were…
Pretty unique [laughs].
DEADLINE: Does the fairytale aspect come into the fashion?
I love spending time in the costume department because its so much fun.
Shes wearing bold patterns that he didnt like.
He had such an opinion about style.
It seemed to be fun, too.
And then also could be oppressive after a while.
I can see both sides of it, and how that piled on the pressure.
DEADLINE: This movie opened strong.
We are constantly told the desire for independent cinema is dying out, but this movie has clearly connected.
Youve been on the other side, too, where a film likeMarie Antoinettedoesnt resonate immediately.
Its taken 17 years, but that movie is finally getting its just reappraisal.
COPPOLA: Yeah, thank you for saying that, we worked so hard on it.
Its hard to hear that.
I know it was not for everyone.
So, its really satisfying now that girls are watching it.
DEADLINE: Art isnt always ready at the moment people are ready to receive it.
DEADLINE: Does it get harder to carve your small piece of the pie?
Doing something thats a little more unusual is harder now than when I started, for sure.
People are checking the algorithm now.
That wasnt a thing that anybody cared about when I was starting out.
Thats what its all about.
DEADLINE: Do you still finish a movie and tell your husband youll never make another one?
COPPOLA: I always say that [laughs].
And hes like, Oh, you always say that.
Im still at that stage with this movie, but I mean, I love making them.
Theres nothing like getting your team together and seeing things come to life in front of your camera.
Im just not one of these people that has a bunch of things cooking all at once.
DEADLINE: Does your relationship to your past work change at all?
I showed my kidsLost in Translationbefore we went to Japan, so I do revisit things by showing them.
I dont know, Im sentimental about them.
I remember the experience of making them, and I can never really look at them objectively.
