‘Elvis’ Director Baz Luhrmann Remembers Lisa Marie Presley in Emotional Tribute

Baz Luhrmann, who has developed a close relationship with the Presley family during the production and promotion of his hit Warner Bros biopic Elvis, shared a tribute on Friday to Lisa Marie Presley, who died Thursday of a cardiac arrest in Los Angeles at 54. As recently as this week, Luhrmann, the film’s star Austin Butler, the Elvis team, and the Presleys attended an event hosted by Warner Bros to celebrate Elvis’ 88th birthday. Then, they all appeared at the Golden Globe Awards on Tuesday, where Butler won Best Actor – Drama for playing the King.

“Over the last year, the entire Elvis movie family and I have felt the privilege of Lisa Marie’s kind embrace,” Luhrmann wrote via Instagram on Friday. “Her sudden, shocking loss has devastated people all around the world. I know her fans everywhere join me in sharing prayers of love and support with her mother, Priscilla, and her wonderful daughters Riley, Finley and Harper.

“Lisa Marie, we will miss your warmth, your smile, your love,” he added, along with a photo of Lisa Marie and Butler laughing together on a couch. After collapsing Thursday in her Calabasas home, Lisa Marie was rushed to a local Los Angeles hospital. That evening, her mother, Priscilla, announced her death. Others in Hollywood expressed their condolences amid Lisa Marie’s death, including her ex-husband Nicolas Cage, who called her death “devastating news.” The Oscar-winning actor released a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, saying that Lisa Marie “lit up every room.” Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson also wrote honored Lisa Marie. The Oscar-winning actor, who starred alongside Butler in Elvis as Colonel Tom Parker, released a joint statement with wife Wilson.

“We are heartbroken over the loss of Lisa Marie Presley,” Hanks wrote Thursday on his Instagram account. “Absolutely broken…” Wilson shared a lengthier message on her own Instagram account, sharing moments from the time she and Hanks spent with Lisa Marie while producing and promoting Elvis. Warner Bros., which produced Elvis this year, paid tribute earlier today, calling Presley “an invaluable partner and truly lovely person whom we will remember as a devoted mother, beloved daughter, and loving friend.” As Elvis’ only child, Lisa Marie will be laid to rest alongside her father in the family’s famous Graceland home, where her son Benjamin, who died in 2022, was buried after his passing. She is survived by daughter Riley Keough and her twin daughters Harper Vivienne and Finley.