Last time viewers laid eyes on Kevin Spacey stalking Washington D.C.’s corridors of power, he was portraying the glowering, amoral predator Netflix calls Frank Underwood, but for Elvis & Nixon, the award-winning actor is taking on a different character cut from the same star-spangled cloth: Richard Nixon.
In the works over at Amazon and Bleecker Street, today’s first trailer for Liza Johnson’s comedy-drama is perhaps much more light-hearted than we first anticipated, with Michael Shannon rounding out the core duo as the King himself, Elvis Presley. Situated in December of 1970, Elvis & Nixon takes place during the height of his career as the genre-defining musician, who sets about visiting the most powerful man in the world in order to put himself forward to join the secret service as an undercover agent. No, really.
Once pitched with Eric Bana and Danny Houston in the starring roles, Johnson’s feature looks to do much more than simply tell the tale behind that famous photo. Plus, with an ensemble cast that includes Alex Pettyfer, Colin Hanks, Evan Peters, Johnny Knoxville, Sky Ferreira and Tracy Letts, Elvis & Nixon has our curiosity alone based on the chemistry between the lead duo. Whether House of Cards fans will be able to separate Spacey’s performance from the one that’s arrested our attention on Netflix for three seasons is another question entirely.
Michael Shannon has entered the building as the King of Rock and Roll, and you’ll be able to see him stand alongside Spacey as the POTUS when Elvis & Nixon opens in theaters in April.
Two men at the height of their powers, conscious they could not stay on top forever, both ripped with fear of the inevitable, sharing one famous private moment in the Oval office. Elvis & Nixon recounts the morning of December 21st 1970, when the King of Rock’ n Roll (Shannon) showed up on the White House lawn to request a meeting with the most powerful man in the world, President Richard Nixon (Spacey). He had a very urgent request: to be sworn in as an undercover Federal Agent at large. This intimate moment in the Oval office between two men at the height of their powers has never been told.