Austin Butler opened up to The Hollywood Reporter about the painful experience of losing his mother, Lori, in his early 20s during the publication’s Actor Roundtable discussion published on Tuesday.
The former Disney channel star, 31, admitted that he had started filming a project shortly after his mother’s passing, which was caused by a battle with cancer, and that he would ‘cry every night.’
The Elvis actor, who has received a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of the King of Rock n’ Roll, also credited his mother for supporting him in his career, stating, ‘I owe her for everything.’
During the roundtable interview, Austin was joined by other talented actors, such as Brendan Fraser and Colin Farrell, both also nominated for Golden Globes.
The Carrie Diaries actor expressed that he first began acting when he, ‘stumbled into extra work,’ adding that he had been, ‘an incredibly shy kid.’
He explained that his mother, Lori, had seen his passion for acting early on. ‘My mom saw that in me, and I owe her for everything because she quit her job and drove me to auditions and took me to acting classes. Then I started working.’
However, after landing larger roles, his mother passed away in 2014 after battling cancer. ‘After my mom passed away, I’d never experienced pain like that before, and I started to question,’ Austin admitted during the interview.
The star stated that after spending time in hospitals and around doctors, he began to ask himself if acting was ‘a noble profession.’
Austin expressed that following his mother’s death, he flew to New Zealand to film a series that was cancelled after two seasons. He explained that although the show was enjoyed by viewers and that he himself had ‘fun’ shooting, ‘I’d go home and cry every night.’
‘I was dealing with grief, but it was also this feeling that I wasn’t aligned with something that felt truly fulfilling,’ he added, revealing that he was around 24-years-old at the time and was ready to take a break from acting.
‘I thought, ‘I’ve got a little bit of money in the bank. I’ll just take time off.’ Then I started sinking into a deeper and deeper depression. It was about six or eight months of that.’
However, he later sent in an audition tape for the Broadway show, The Iceman Cometh, which also starred Denzel Washington. Austin explained after being cast, that was, ‘the moment that changed my career.’
Austin has previously credited and paid tribute to his mother, including his recent appearance as host of Saturday Night Live last month in December.
During his opening monologue, the former Nickelodeon actor stated to the audience that when he was younger, he had a ‘crippling shyness,’ but when he was with his mom, ‘I’d just do anything to make her laugh,’ including a Gollum impression.
‘But, really, being silly with her is what broke me out of my shell and the core of what started me in acting.’
Being on SNL had made the star think about his mother, and that he could imagine, ‘how proud she’d be of her son, who used to not be able to order food for myself at a restaurant, is now standing on this stage.’
To conclude his monologue, Austin then dedicated each ‘silly voice’ or a ‘funny face’ he did on the show to his later mother, emotionally adding, ‘That’s for you, mom.’
The star, who is set to make an appearance later on Tuesday at the 80th Golden Globe Awards, will be accompanied by his sister, Ashley. When recently talking to Entertainment Tonight, Austin expressed, ‘she’s my one and only sister, so it’ll be nice to be with her.’
Although his girlfriend and supermodel, Kaia Gerber, will not be by his side during the award show, the couple were recently spotted together on a getaway to Mexico during the New Year’s holiday along with her family.
The talented actor was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture-Drama category due to his portrayal of Elvis in Baz Luhrmann’s 2022 biopic. The critically acclaimed feature was nominated for two additional Golden Globes, including Best Motion Picture-Drama and also Best Director.
During the 34th Annual Palm Springs Film Festival earlier this month, Austin was the recipient of the Breakthrough Performance Award for his role as Elvis. Earlier Sunday, he also attended a pre Golden Globes event and was spotted with Lisa Marie Presley.
The 2023 Golden Globes award ceremony is set to air live from the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles on NBC later on Tuesday evening.