For Elvis Presley fans, Netflix’s new documentary is pure gold — packed with untold stories, raw confessions, and the truth behind the King’s most iconic moment.
Return of the King: The Fall & Rise of Elvis Presley takes viewers behind the curtain of his legendary 1968 NBC Comeback Special — the night that not only saved his career but redefined his legacy.
By the mid-60s, Elvis was burned out. Instead of gritty roles like James Dean or Marlon Brando, Hollywood forced him into formulaic musicals. Once electrifying, the King was reduced to singing “Old MacDonald” in Double Trouble. “That to me is a crime,” Priscilla Presley says in the film. “It made him a laughingstock. And he knew it.”
Director Jason Hehir explains that Elvis became “physically ill” at the thought of more bad movies. What he wanted was simple: to return to music. But he hadn’t sung live in seven years, and the fear nearly kept him backstage. “He almost didn’t leave his dressing room,” Hehir reveals.