Epitomizing the perfect marriage of fashion and film, the stars of the new Elvis Presley biopic, Elvis, will be dressed in glamorously retro designs by the fashion houses, Prada and Miu Miu.
From the director who brought us 2001’s Moulin Rouge, Baz Luhrmann has teamed up with his wife, Oscar winning costume designer Catherine Martin, and Italian fashion designer Miuccia Prada for his new film’s wardrobe — and we’re getting a first look at some of the fashions ahead of the May 24th premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.
Starring Austin Butler as the titular role, newcomer Olivia DeJonge will portray Priscilla Presely, while Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks appear as Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker. The film follows the life of king of rock ‘n’ roll, his music, and his relationship with Priscilla, and of course, there are plenty of bedazzled fashion moments to see from the hip-swinging showman.
Prada’s custom costumes took inspiration from landmark fashion moments in Elvis’ life while also revisiting standout garments from the Miu Miu and Prada archives.
In new images released by Prada, some designs in the movie include a wine-colored suit with dramatically high popped collar for Elvis. Priscilla’s character’s wardrobe includes a lavender brocade pantsuit with a flowing beaded fringe top, which highlights a Miu Miu signature and calls to mind the real-life ensemble worn to a concert in Las Vegas in the late ‘60s.
Another IRL fashion moment from Priscilla was brought to life by the designer too, including a mohair sweater, A-line tweed dress and suede jacket, that she wore to a NBC Elvis Special.
“Central to the Elvis narrative is Elvis and Priscilla’s legendary love story,” said costume designer Catherine Martin in a press release. “Priscilla Presley’s beauty and iconic style has indelibly marked contemporary culture. Accordingly, it was important for Baz and I that we remain true to this legacy by not merely imitating Ms. Presley’s actual clothes, but that we find a modern way of connecting audiences to her distinctive, history-making style.”
She went onto explain, “It was wonderful for both Baz and I to collaborate creatively with Miuccia once again. Immersing ourselves in the Prada and Miu Miu archives with superlatively skilled ateliers, we made the journey to translate the Presleys’ historical clothes into the costumes that would be in the film.”
It isn’t the first time the trio has worked together — the Italian designer created exclusive Prada designs on Luhrmann’s features like Romeo + Juliet in 1996 and The Great Gatsby 2013, the latter of which garnered Martin two Academy Awards.
The partnership was teased at the 2022 Met Gala, when the Elvis cast attended donning custom ensembles from Prada. Butler, DeJonge, Kacey Musgraves, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Luhrmann, Martin, and Ms. Priscilla Presley all adorned blinged out Elvis-worthy looks on the red carpet.
While we’ve already seen what this dynamic trio can do, the Elvis biopic is sure bring more memorable looks to the big screen. Mark your calendars – the movie hits theater June 24.
