Ashley Greene and Ron Livingston as Priscilla and Elvis Presley on the set of 'The Shangri-La Suite' (Pacific Coast …
On Thursday in Los Angeles, actors Ron Livingston ("Office Space") and Ashley Greene ("Twilight") were spotted on the set of their latest film – an indie historical fiction pic titled "The Shangri-La Suite" – all decked out in groovy gear as the King of Rock 'n' Roll himself, Elvis Presley, and his former lady love, Priscilla Presley.
Priscilla and Elvis Presley in 1973 (AP Photo)
To capture the iconic former couple's style for the film, Livingston sported Elvis's signature dramatic sideburns and added a bit of a pooch to his mid-section, which was made all the more obvious by his oh-so-slim swimwear and open robe. Just a hunka hunka burning love right there.
Meanwhile, Greene's much more flattering garb featured a flowing, lemon chiffon day dress and short-heeled sandals, with her hair styled in thick, parted tresses to match Priscilla's infamously lush brunette mane.
The pair shot scenes together at a hotel pool – no, not the Heartbreak Hotel – alongside child actress Alyvia Alyn Lind, who portrays their then-six-year-old daughter, Lisa Marie Presley.
The film story takes place in 1974, a year after Elvis and Priscilla were divorced in real life, but you might notice that the family's fun-in-the-sun day being filmed here appears cordial and relaxed enough. This is probably because the couple notoriously remained close and friendly well after the dissolution of their marriage, even as his health began to deteriorate and problems with addiction set in (which was around the same time period as this movie's setting).
Interestingly enough, though, even as the pair of pop culture royals was and is storied enough to be featured as the central figures of any film, they are but supporting characters in "The Shangri-La Hotel," the script for which was written by Chris Hutton and Eddie O'Keefe, with O'Keefe helming in his directorial debut. Instead, the flick surrounds a pair of troubled mental hospital patients (portrayed by Emily Browning and Luke Grimes) who fall in love and plot to drive cross-country to murder Elvis Presley during his concert appearance in L.A. to fulfill the guy's lifelong dream. (Since — spoiler warning? — the real Elvis didn't meet his end 'til 1977 when he had a heart attack on the toilet, chances are the would-be assassins' plans get stymied somewhere along the way.)
In movie math terms, then, the equation would be something along the lines of "Natural Born Killers" plus "Bonnie and Clyde" divided by "Walk the Line" equals "Hotel."
"Twisted" actor Avan Jogia also stars in the film as a friend and road trip tag-along of the murder-hungry couple, heading to the City of Angels on his own mission to seek a sex change operation. The film is being produced by Albert Berger and Ron Yerxa of "Little Miss Sunshine" fame, along with Tariq Merhab.
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