Taron Egerton’s audition tape with Hugh Jackman helped land lead role in Elton John biopic

Taron Egerton’s first audition tape that would eventually land him the role of Elton John in biopic Rocketman was a duet with a surprising Aussie superstar.

Taron Egerton’s first audition tape that would eventually land him the role of Elton John in Rocketman was a duet with Aussie superstar Hugh Jackman.

The two recorded the synth-pop song Thrill Me for the closing credits of their 2016 film Eddie the Eagle, which was produced by Matthew Vaughn, who later joined with forces with John and his partner David Furnish to make the eagerly anticipated biopic based on the pop great’s life.

“Matthew called me afterwards when he heard it and said ‘you can sing’,” recalled Egerton in Sydney ahead of Saturday’s Australian premiere.

“And I said ‘I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think I could sing’. And he said ‘no you can really sing’. I think from there the cogs in his mind began turning.”

Sir Elton John and Taron Egerton perform during the "Rocketman" Gala Party during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival. Picture: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Egerton said he was initially daunted by playing the larger-than-life, flamboyant singer, who will visit Australia for a three-month farewell tour later this year.

But he said John welcomed him into the home he shares with Furnish and their two children, gave him access to his tour diaries and even gave him his first diamond earring as a keepsake.

Taron Egerton.

Hugh Jackman.

“It was daunting but over the past few years I have spent a lot of time with him and it doesn’t take long before you get quite a clear picture of who the man is,” he said.

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“He’s 72 so he’s not quite the whirlwind he was but he is still sharp as a knife. Very funny, very irreverent, very anarchic and naughty.”

Egerton said that after the huge success of Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, audiences are craving a return to a time when stars were real and not manufactured.

“We live in the post internet age and it’s very hard to find things to be surprised by and these guys were from a time where there were true revolutionary, creative pioneers so perhaps it’s people searching for a nostalgic reliving of a time when things were truly new.”

Rocketman opens next Thursday, with previews this weekend.