Jacob Elordi revealed he ate a pound of bacon a day to portray rock and roll icon Elvis Presley. The actor did this as part of his project with director Sofia Coppola on the film Priscilla. The habit, as Elordi admitted, made him the “biggest” he has ever been.
Coppola’s version of the biographical drama film was met with a lot of criticism, but one thing that really caught fans’ attention was the famous story of the Fool’s Gold Loaf that the music icon loved to consume.
Elvis Presley Lived Off Peanut Butter Sandwiches
In a roundtable interview with Entertainment Weekly, co-stars Jacob Elordi and Cailee Spaeny, together with director Sofia Coppola, discussed Elvis Presley’s diet. Coppola told Elordi, “You ate a lot of bacon. Priscilla [Presley] told us that Elvis liked really burnt bacon.” The Euphoria actor responded:
“I averaged, like, a pound of bacon a day. It’s not that noticeable because I’m quite long, but I was the biggest I’ve ever been.”
Spaeny recalled the famous tale of the Fool’s Gold Loaf, the massive 8,000-calorie sandwich consisting of a pound of bacon, sourdough bread, peanut butter, and jelly that Presley discovered at the Colorado Mine Company restaurant in Denver.
It was said that the rock star loved the sandwich so much he flew to Denver on a private jet with some of his friends to help his cravings. When they arrived, the restaurant staff served them a pile of sandwiches. Coppola revealed what Priscilla told her about that narrative:
“Priscilla told me that because they were so poor, that they would just live off peanut butter and banana sandwiches. So when he was more successful, like, it reminded him of being a kid. But we have to ask her how to really make them because she can tell us how to do it.”
Elordi trying to emulate the habits of the character he was portraying really showed his dedication to the role, even though it meant him gaining a few pounds.
Sofia Coppola Was Surprised With The Story Of The Presleys
Sofia Coppola admitted in the same interview with EW that she has always been fascinated with the story of Priscilla and Elvis Presley. She said:
“I was really surprised because I realized how little we know about her. They’re such a mythic, famous couple — Elvis and Priscilla — but when I read her story, I had no idea she was going to high school while she was living in Graceland. I was really impressed with how she really reveals what their life was like, what her experience was growing up in such an over-the-top setting. Also, I was surprised with how universal it was [and] how relatable it was.”
To create Priscilla, Coppola and the cast had access to the movies and photographs of the Presleys which helped them understand the people they were trying to portray on the big screen. Elordi reflected on his time working on the film:
“We had the freedom of going to a place where he wasn’t so well documented, behind closed doors, so I could play with it a little bit and try to make it a bit more grounded and attempt to make it sound more human.”
Priscilla is based on the 1985 memoir Elvis and Me written by Priscilla Presley which followed their relationship when she was 14 and Elvis was 24.
