Baz Luhrmann casts Olivia DeJonge in the role of Priscilla Presley for his untitled Elvis biopic

Known for discovering new stars, Baz Luhrmann has cast a little known Australian in the role of Priscilla Presley in his Elvis biopic to be filmed in Queensland next year.

USA singer Elvis Presley with wife Priscilla and daughter Lisa-Marie.

FILMMAKER Baz Luhrmann has found his Priscilla Presley.

In the biggest role of her career, 21-year-old Australian actor Olivia DeJonge has been cast as Elvis Presley’s wife in Luhrmann’s anticipated Elvis biopic, which will film in Queensland early next year.

Australian actor Olivia DeJonge, pictured in TV series Will (2017), will portray Priscilla Presley in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic.

Priscilla Presley, pictured with their daughter Lisa-Marie, was central to Elvis’s rise to fame.

DeJonge will act opposite American actor Austin Butler as Elvis and Tom Hanks as his manager Colonel Tom Parker.

Where will Tom Hanks stay while filming on Gold Coast?

“Olivia is capable of manifesting the complex depth and presence that has made Priscilla Presley an icon in her own right. She’s an extremely talented young actor and the perfect counterpoint to Austin’s Elvis,” Luhrmann said in statement to Deadline.

The Melbourne native recently starred in Netflix series The Society and American crime film Stray Dogs, having previously earned praise for her role in M. Night Shyamalan’s The Visit (2015).

Austin Butler was previously announced in the role of Elvis. Photo: Theo Wargo/Getty Images

Priscilla, who divorced from Elvis in 1972 and shares a daughter, Lisa Marie, with the late star, was central to Elvis’s rise to fame.

The Queensland Goverment announced in May that they had secured the project during a recent meeting with Luhrmann in London and would back the project along with the Australian Government’s Producer Offset program.

Filmmaker Baz Luhrmann arrives in Brisbane for Hugh Jackman’s show ahead of Elvis filming

Baz Luhrmann and Austin Butler with Rhonda Lamb at Elvis Presley's Birthplace on October 12. Photo: Instagram/ @elvispresleybirthplace

Luhrmann and his wife Catherine Martin, the film’s production and costume designer, arrived on the Gold Coast in August to begin lengthy preparations for the film, with cameras understood to be rolling in late January or early February.

Luhrmann and Butler were pictured visiting Elvis’ birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi earlier this month.

The project is Luhrmann’s first since his adaptation of The Great Gatsby (2013) starring Leonardo DiCaprio

Originally published as Baz Luhrmann casts Olivia DeJonge in the role of Priscilla Presley for his untitled Elvis biopic