Priscilla Presley shared some bittersweet memories of the last night she spent with her daughter, Lisa Marie, before her unexpected death earlier this year.
In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Presley said she gathered “there was something not right” with Lisa Marie’s health the last time they saw each other. But despite that unnerving sense, the evening was filled with celebration and laughter. It was Jan. 10 and Austin Butler had just won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama for his starring turn in the Elvis biopic. After the show, Presley and Lisa Marie went to the Chateau Marmont to mark the occasion.
“We had just gotten there, you go down all these stairs,” Priscilla recalled. “I tripped a little bit because I had these high heels on, and [Lisa Marie] started laughing so hard. I started laughing. We hadn’t even had a drink yet. She goes, ‘Oh my God, Mom, you can’t even have a drink.’ … It was fun, a fun memory.”
Not long after, Presley said they sat down and ordered drinks, when Lisa Marie suddenly said, “Mom, my stomach hurts really bad.” Presley said they “immediately got up and left.” Two days later, Lisa Marie’s ex-husband, Danny Keough, called to tell her Lisa Marie was in the hospital.
“I got right in the car, but she was already gone,” Presley said. “I still can’t believe it. I don’t wish this on any mother.”
Lisa Marie died Jan. 12, 2023 at the age of 54. A report from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office said her death was caused by a small bowel obstruction.
In the wake of Lisa Marie’s death, Presley was briefly involved in a contentious battle over Lisa Marie’s estate (and thus the portion of the Elvis estate she still controlled) with her granddaughter, and Lisa Marie’s daughter, Riley Keough. The matter was settled in June, with Keough becoming sole trustee of Lisa Marie’s estate, while also agreeing to pay Priscilla $1 million, plus $400,000 in legal fees.
Priscilla is also set to be the primary subject of Sofia Coppola’s new movie, Priscilla, a biopic based on Priscilla’s 1985 memoir, Elvis and Me. The film is expected to serve as a kind of counterweight to Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, delving into some of the more uncomfortable aspects of the couple’s relationship, like their glaring age difference (Priscilla was 14, and Elvis 24 when they met).
While Priscilla herself has been supportive of the film, Authentic Brands Group, the company that owns the majority of the Elvis estate, hasn’t appeared particularly keen on it. In the same THR interview, Coppola noted that they didn’t allow any of Elvis’ music to be used in the film: “They don’t like projects that they haven’t originated, and they’re protective of their brand. But that made us be more creative.”