How Hollywood hunk Austin Butler is preparing for Elvis role

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Austin Butler is playing the King of Rock 'n' Roll himself in Baz Luhrmann's upcoming Elvis Presley biopic.

The American actor enlisted the help of a Gold Coast trainer to replicate the late singer's build, and work on hip mobility exercises to master Elvis' iconic moves.  

Strength and conditioning coach and former Olympic swimmer Ryan Gambin told The Courier-Mail on Sunday: He was already in really good shape. I think they are going for mainly the 1950s look for Elvis.'

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© Provided by Daily Mail 'I think they are going for mainly the 1950s look for Elvis': Hollywood hunk Austin Butler's (pictured) Gold Coast trainer reveals the actor's unique workout focus ahead of playing Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's upcoming biopic blockbuster

Gambin said the actor was training three times per week at his CMBT training centre in Miami when filming was on hold, and now often trains in costume between  filming takes on set. 

'He really takes his job seriously and obviously Elvis has a lot to do with his hip movement so we were doing a lot of hip dominant exercises. We didn’t have any strength goals … but we pretty much focused everything around his hips,' he said.

Butler has been doing plenty of squats and dead lifts, and Gambin says Butler often accidentally slips into character while working out now. 

© Provided by Daily Mail It's now or never! Strength coach and former Olympic swimmer Ryan Gambi (left) said the actor was training three times per week at his CMBT training centre in Miami when filming was on hold, and now often trains in costume between filming takes on set

© Provided by Daily Mail 'We actually had to hold up on training his arms because Baz was a bit concerned his arms were getting too big at one stage': Gambin has also worked with director Luhrmann for Butler's ideal blockbuster physique. Pictured: Elvis in 1950s

'When we train he has little quirks now. If we are doing a hard set of squats or something, halfway through the set he’ll be like, “Oh baby”, in an Elvis voice – and he doesn’t even know he does it,' he said.    

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Gambin has also worked with director Luhrmann for Butler's ideal blockbuster physique, and added: 'We actually had to hold up on training his arms because Baz was a bit concerned his arms were getting too big at one stage… because his T-shirts were sitting a little tighter on Austin’s arms than they were on Elvis’s arms.'

He has now spent more than a year training the Hollywood actor, having begun when he first arrived in Australia in late 2019.

© Provided by Daily Mail 'When we train he has little quirks now': Having now spent more than a year training the Hollywood actor for the role, Gambin joked that sometimes Butler accidentally slips into talking like Elvis during training. Pictured: Elvis in 1975

On Instagram in January, Gambin took a moment to praise Butler on his dedication and hard work in the gym.  

'I’ve had the pleasure of getting a glimpse of watching him act, sing, dance and LIFT. I’ve been fortunate enough to coach some incredible people. I learn A LOT about people while training them in the gym & it’s fun to try to decipher what it is that separates those that are at the top of their game to the rest,' he began.

'It’s clear that Austin’s work ethic and attention to detail play a role in his success.'

Filming for the biopic resumed in September, six months after it was forced to close after actor Tom Hanks, 64, and his wife, Rita Wilson, , tested positive for the coronavirus in March 2020.

Tom Hanks will star as Elvis' [Butler] notorious manager, Colonel Tom Parker.

Baz Luhrmann's Warner Bros. Elvis movie is back on track, and is slated for a 2022 cinema release. 

© Provided by Daily Mail Coming soon: Baz Luhrmann's Warner Bros. Elvis movie is back on track, and is slated for a 2022 cinema release. Pictured: Portrait of Elvis circa 1966