Priscilla Presley also admitted that at first, when she learned that Baz Luhrmann was planned to direct the biopic, she was worried; nonetheless, the finished film left her speechless.

The images from “Elvis” that were the hardest to see were provided by Elvis Presley’s ex-wife, Priscilla Presley, on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of his passing.

Presley said to TODAY that revisiting Elvis’ relationship with Colonel Tom Parker, his manager, and how he wanted to pursue a career that went beyond music was the most difficult aspect of seeing Baz Luhrmann’s dramatisation of her former husband’s life.

“Colonel Parker probably should have stayed a publicist,” she remarked. “He wanted to do pictures, real movies. “I lived it, therefore it was painful that he didn’t take Elvis where he wanted to go.”

She went on to say, “I lived the disagreements they had, I lived Elvis trying to explain he didn’t want to make the movies with all the girls and the beaches and everything, he genuinely wanted to do important stuff. “So viewing the movie brought back a lot of memories of experiencing that, with him.”

Presley also mentioned that when she initially learned that Luhrmann intended to begin the film, she had some initial reservations. She said that after inviting him to her house and spending around four hours there, he made her feel more at ease but that she was still apprehensive of how things would turn out.

She did, however, attend a private screening with Jerry Schilling, an old friend of Elvis, and she said

On this day in 1973, the 42-year-old King of Rock ‘n’ Roll passed away from a heart attack inside Memphis, Tennessee’s Graceland Mansion.

However, 45 years after his passing, Elvis has been able to re-enter popular culture in part because to Baz Luhrmann’s new biopic about the singer’s life, which stars Austin Butler as Elvis and Olivia DeJonge as Priscilla. Through the singer’s relationship with his manager, who is represented by Tom Hanks, “Elvis” chronicles the singer’s ascent to prominence.

Since the release of the movie, Priscilla told TODAY that she believes a new generation has begun to become aware of Elvis, notably at Graceland, his house that she opened to the public in 1982.

It’s incredible to see how many people still travel to see Elvis, she remarked. “30,000 people attended the candlelight vigil yesterday night. That so conveys a lot.”

When Elvis was enlisted into the Army at the age of 14, Priscilla was only 14. When Elvis was 24 years old and in Germany, they first connected at a party near an army installation. Lisa Marie Presley was the couple’s only child and they wed eight years later.

The pair split up in 1973 after six years of marriage, although they remained close. In 1982, Priscilla let visitors into Graceland after Elvis passed away five years earlier.

Angie Marchese, vice president of archives and exhibitions at Graceland, told TODAY that visitors to the home are becoming more younger as a result of seeing “Elvis” or learning about his songs on streaming services.

Nearly 45 years after his demise, Marchese stated, “Elvis still has that magnetism that can draw admirers.”

“I believe Elvis will always be a significant figure.”