As a child of the South, actor Cailee Spaeny grew up steeped in Graceland mythology, memorabilia and Elvis Presley tunes. Her mother loved Elvis and it wasn’t unusual for a trip to that famous house in Memphis, Tennessee, to count as a family vacation. Priscilla Presley was of course part of that. But Spaeny would find there was much more than she’d ever known when she got the opportunity to play her in Sofia Coppola ’s new film, “Priscilla,” now in theaters nationwide. “I had no idea about her side of the story and what her experience was growing up in Graceland,” Spaeny said in a recent interview. The film is based on Presley’s 1985 memoir “Elvis and Me,” a diary-like account of her years with the King. She recounts meeting him at 14 in Wiesbaden, Germany, and moving to Graceland not too long after, where she finished high school. She talks about her unconventional hours, staying up all night with Elvis and trying to stay awake in school the next day. She details how he dictated her look including her hair (black and big!), eye makeup (more!) and clothing choices (no prints!), their passion for one another, his volatility and her isolation. And perhaps most importantly how she, and everyone around him, just wanted to make him happy— even after she chose to leave. Spaeny got to spend some time with Presley before filming began, though she wasn’t entirely prepared to be as star-struck as she was. “I remember when I first met her, I had all these questions ready to go. I was so prepared. And then I just see her sort of walking my way and they all just leave you because she has such a presence about her,” Spaeny said. “The way she carries herself is really like no one else. I mean, she really is American royalty.” She was equally grateful that Presley did not hang around set during the shoot where she and Jacob Elordi, the rising Australian actor cast as Elvis, had only 30 days to tell this expansive but intimate story with hundreds of costume changes and quite a few wigs too. “You just don’t know what you’re getting into when someone is cast as your co-star,” Spaeny said. “And when you have that little time, you’re shooting massive scenes every single day. You don’t get a light day. So to be able to go into this project with someone who took it as seriously as he did and really took the time to find those nuances and to do the prep beforehand was such a relief.” Elordi said they quickly developed an “unspoken language” that helped carry them through. As an actor, he loved going deep into why Elvis behaved the way he did. “You have to establish a base where you can just fall into this immediate love,” he said. “We would sort of look each other in the eyes and it would just say, ‘You’re going to do this? I’m going to do this.’” The beehive hairdo, Spaeny laughed, took more getting used to. She found herself having to walk “like a doll” and sometimes she'd forget its height when getting into a car. But the wigs would be a grounding factor in a shoot that often had her playing very different ages in the same day. “You just got to do what you got to do,” Spaeny said. “It was just one of the many fun little challenges along the way. The hair, makeup and costumes were really essential in knowing what age she is and where she is emotionally. That was the thing that I held on to.” And it wasn't just a dress up extravaganza for Spaeny either. Elordi got to wear custom looks throughout. “It was kind of as cool as it sounds,” he said. "You know, for me personally, it was like, ‘Do you want to be Elvis Presley for 30 days and wear Valentino clothes that are tailored to your body?’ Yes. That’s awesome.” Though Spaeny might have less dialogue than Elordi, her performance has been making waves since its debut — a breakout that has already been recognized by the Venice Film Festival and is sure to garner more nominations as awards season picks up. “She can convey so much emotion with just her face,” Coppola said. “It’s mysterious but the camera can pick up on it. She’s so photogenic and some people just jump off the screen, but you can connect to them in an emotional way.” In one scene, where Elvis tells a very pregnant Priscilla that he wants her to move out and she calls his bluff, Coppola debated using narration. She’d loved what Presley had written about that moment and wanted to capture that, but she also wanted to have the film stay in the present. And Spaeny was up to the challenge. “I talked to Cailee and we did another take and she did some little shift,” Coppola said. “You see halfway down the hall, her face changes with resolution. It was so subtle. I don’t know how she did it. It’s a talent that some actresses can really just convey so much without saying anything.” And though things went quickly and sometimes it felt like Spaeny couldn’t feel her feet on the ground, she was grateful that her director kept a calm, focused set. It was, she said, the opposite of chaos. “I’ve never really worked with someone quite like her, and the way she handles herself on the set,” Spaeny said. “She knows when to take things seriously and when to have fun. Everyone just brings their A-game because of her. She just leads with kindness. She wants to be collaborative and she has a clear vision.” Though both Spaeny and Elordi have trouble watching themselves on screen, they are proud of “Priscilla.” Elordi said he felt honored to be “part of the way that she wants her story to be told." And both walked away with something tangible from whirlwind too. Elordi said he has a few "secret things.” Spaeny got something too, but it might be a bit much even for someone who grew up surrounded by Elvis stuff. “I have this really strange mural of myself as Priscilla. It was a beautiful painting, but it’s me as Priscilla that was hanging on the walls of Graceland. I just am like, what do I do with this? I can’t put it anywhere,” she laughed. “I think I’ve got to, like, ship it to my grandma. I think she’d love it.” Read More Jimmy Kimmel to host the Oscars for the fourth time The Israeli military has set its sights on southern Gaza. Problems loom in next phase of war Business lobby attacks as New York nears a noncompete ban, rare in the US A suspicious letter to the top elections agency in Kansas appears harmless, authorities say Mayorkas warns of dangers to the US if it loses tools to block terrorists from using drones and WMD Hospital director in Haiti says a gang stormed in and took hundreds of women and children hostage

Michael Strahan missed yet another episode of 'GMA' without an explainable reason but his cryptic post on Instagram might have some answers

Loved ones gathered on Sunday to honor Rachel Morin’s memory as her killer remains at large weeks after she was found dead on the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air, Maryland. The 37-year-old’s heartbroken mother shared what she felt when she found out her daughter’s body had been found. “The pain was so unbearable,” Patty Morin said. Morin was found dead after heading off for a walk along on the trail on 6 August. Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler recently told Fox News that identifying and catching the suspect is a “top priority” amid fears that he could do “something harmful to someone else”. “This individual poses a threat to every community from here to Los Angeles because we don’t know where he’s laying his head at night,” Sheriff Gahler said. The Harford County Sheriff’s Office revealed that DNA found at the scene of Morin’s murder had been matched to the DNA left at a home where an unknown man broke into a home in Los Angeles and violently attacked a young girl back in March. “The public will not be safe until we get him in custody,” Sheriff Gahler said. Read More Maryland police have DNA matching Rachel Morin murder suspect and video images but no identity Rachel Morin’s mother breaks silence on daughter’s killing Maryland sheriff calls out ‘heinous coward’ who killed mother-of-five Rachel Morin Rachel Morin’s boyfriend speaks out after police name man wanted over sex assault as suspect in murder Rachel Morin killer ‘not going to stop’ unless arrested, police say as new clues dry up

Celebrities, lawmakers, brands and everyday social media users are flocking to Meta’s freshly minted app Threads to connect with their followers, including many Twitter refugees tired of the drama surrounding Elon Musk’s raucous oversight of that platform since acquiring it last year

Analysis of the remains of a young Medieval girl, who was buried face down with her ankles potentially tied together, suggests extra measures were taken to ensure "she could not 'return' from the grave," archaeologists have said.

The freshman-to-be at the University of West Georgia died after Richard Edward Sigman fired randomly at parked cars, killing her instantly

By Safiyah Riddle (Reuters) -U.S. existing home sales dropped to a six month-low in July as home owners who are

Donald Trump was dealt a blow in E. Jean Carroll’s remaining lawsuit against him after the US Justice

Europe’s biggest container lines want to phase out ships powered only by fossil fuels. The proposal was announced

Gebisa Ejeta, 73, receives the National Medal of Science for developing an improved sorghum hybrid.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is running for president

49-year-old Suzanne Morphew was reported missing on May 10 after she disappeared without a trace during a bike ride in Salida, Colorado