Vanessa Hudgens has reacted to her ex-boyfriend Austin Butler’s accent, which has been a huge topic of conversation over the past few months.
The actor won praise for his uncanny portrayal of Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic last year, which recently landed him a Golden Globe award.
However, fans believe the 31-year-old has now permanently adopted Elvis’ accent, as his voice has undoubtedly changed since he played the iconic singer.
On January 19, Vanessa reacted to the buzz surrounding Austin’s accent by commenting on a post that poked fun at how his voice has changed.
In the comments section, the actress commented: “Crying.”
Vanessa dated Austin from 2011 to 2020, and previously admitted she was the one who first suggested he should play Elvis in a movie.Â
The actor spent two years preparing for the role, and confessed he put his “life on pause” as he perfected the late singer’s accent and mannerisms.
Speaking at the 2023 Golden Globes on January 10, Austin said he will “always be linked” to Elvis after he was asked to address his accent change.
“I don’t think I sound like him still, but I guess I must because I hear it a lot,” he said.
“I had three years where that was my only focus. So, I’m sure there’s pieces of him in my DNA and I’ll always be linked.”
Irene Bartlett, who was Austin’s voice coach for Elvis, also came to his defence after the awards ceremony, after viewers poked fun at his accent during his acceptance speech.
“What you saw in that Golden Globes speech, that’s him,” she said. “It’s genuine, it’s not put on.”
“I feel sorry people are saying that, you know, it’s still acting [but] he’s actually taken [the voice] on board. I don’t know how long that will last, or if it’s going to be there forever.”
