Elvis Is Lonesome No More in Apple's Salute to the King

Elvis Presley died almost exactly 30 years before the original iPhone launched. But now, the King of Rock and Roll takes center stage in a fun holiday commercial for Apple’s iOS 12.1 update—showing a group of actual Elvis impersonators using the iPhone’s Group FaceTime feature to connect. 

Apple found real-life impersonators, who were chosen to represent Elvis’ various periods, from classic pompadour Elvis to Las Vegas and Hawaiian Elvis. 

Each of the Elvises gets his own moment in the spotlight, as they collectively croon his 1961 ballad “There’s Always Me.” 

The message of togetherness is a nice one at the holidays. Indeed, Apple has focused on FaceTime before in its Christmas campaigns, including this cute 2010 spot for the iPhone 4.

Apple’s embrace of Elvis comes a year after a larger Apple project involving the rock legend fell apart. The tech giant had been planning a 10-part Elvis biopic produced by The Weinstein Co., but canceled it following the Harvey Weinstein scandal.