Why Harry Styles was not chosen to portray Elvis Presley in upcoming biopic: ‘He was desperate’

Harry Styles is known for his record-breaking success, and his impact has even reached ‘Elvis’ director Baz Luhrmann, who recently explained why he prefered not to cast the singer in the highly anticipated biopic starring Austin Butler as the legendary musician.

The successful artist was excited to have the opportunity to get into the role of Elvis Presley, however the coveted role was desired by many other Hollywood stars, and ultimately went to Butler, partly because Denzel Washington mentored the actor onstage and convinced Luhrmann to give him the role.

And when asked about his decision to cast Butler instead of Styles, the director revealed he would be thrilled to “work on something with him” but his worldwide success as a singer was the reason for him not to be included in the cast of the long awaited film, adding that Butler was “born to play” Elvis.

© Elvis

“Harry is a really talented actor,” Luhrmann said during a recent interview in the ‘Fitzy & Wippa’ podcast on Monday, declaring that “the real issue with Harry is, he’s Harry Styles. He’s already an icon.”

“Harry and I came to a place, genuinely I mean, he was just desperate to put the suit on and explore. He’s such a great spirit and I have nothing but great things to say about Harry Styles,” he added.

And while he was unfortunately not involved in the film, fans can expect to see him in a new project by the acclaimed director, as he already consideres him an icon.