Austin Butler Credits Ex Vanessa Hudgens For Helping Inspire 'Elvis' Role: 'I Owe Her A Lot'

Austin Butler has finally acknowledged his ex-girlfriend Vanessa Hudgens' role in his "Elvis" success.

The 31-year-old actor, who won a Golden Globe and earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's film, revealed that Hudgens, 34, encouraged him to try out for the role years ago when they were a couple.

Butler thanked the "High School Musical" star, whom he dated for nearly a decade before they split in 2020, for supporting him and helping inspire his role as the king of rock and roll.

"I was with my partner at the time," he said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. "We'd been together for so long and she had this sort of clairvoyant moment and so I really, I owe her a lot for believing in me."

Hudgens previously shared her version of how the idea for Butler to play Elvis first arose.

During an appearance on "Live with Kelly and Ryan" in 2019, shortly after his casting in Elvis was announced, Hudgens recalled, "It's so crazy, because last December, we were driving along and we were listening to Christmas music, and then an Elvis Presley Christmas song came on. He had just dyed his hair dark — he's a natural blonde — and I was looking at him and he was singing along and I was like, 'Babe, you need to play Elvis. I don't know how, but I'm serious. You need to play him.'"

The "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" actor shared the same story on the Hollywood Reporter's "Actors Roundtable" earlier this month. However, he minimized her role, referring to her as a "friend."

"The month before I heard that Baz was making the movie, I was going to look at Christmas lights with a friend, and there was an Elvis Christmas song on the radio and I was singing along, and my friend looked over at me and goes, 'You've got to play Elvis.' I said, 'Oh, that's such a long shot,'" Butler said.

He continued, "A couple of weeks later, I was playing the piano. I never really sang for any of my friends or anything. That same friend was there and I was playing the piano. She said, 'I'm serious. You gotta figure out how you can get the rights to a script.' Then my agent called and said, 'So, Baz Luhrmann is making an Elvis film.'"

Hudgens was thrilled when Butler finally landed the role. In July 2019, she took to Instagram to express how proud she was of her then-boyfriend.

"I CAN'T WAIT ... SO PROUD OF MY HONEYYYYY!!!" Hudgens wrote on Instagram.

Last week, Hudgens weighed in on the debate about Butler's voice.

After Ryan Scott shared a funny Instagram post comparing the actor's lingering Elvis accent to Lady Gaga's Italian accent from "House of Gucci," Hudgens commented, "Crying."