Every January, Graceland transforms from a historic landmark into a living heartbeat of memory. Fans arrive from every corner of the globe, carrying vinyl sleeves, faded tour programs, and stories passed down through families. They come to honor the life and music of Elvis Presley—but in 2026, the pilgrimage carries an extra charge of electricity. On January 8, the King’s birthday, Graceland will host exclusive early premiere screenings of EPiC: Elvis Presley In Concert, offering attendees a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience the film weeks before its global release.
The announcement landed like a spark in dry grass. In the same breath, distributors NEON and Universal Pictures International confirmed that EPiC will debut in a special IMAX engagement beginning February 20, 2026, followed by a full theatrical release on February 27. The buzz has been instant and loud—but those who make the journey to Memphis for Elvis’s birthday will be the first to feel the room go dark, the speakers rise, and the past surge back into the present.
Not Just a Concert Film—A Resurrection of Feeling
Directed by Baz Luhrmann, EPiC: Elvis Presley In Concert isn’t a standard compilation of performances. It’s a cinematic reimagining—an immersive blend of rare archival footage, newly restored audio, and bold visual storytelling that aims to place you in the front row of history. Luhrmann’s signature style doesn’t polish the edges off Elvis’s performances; it amplifies their urgency. The sweat, the swagger, the vulnerability—this film leans into the raw electricity that made Elvis more than a star. He was an event.
For longtime fans, EPiC promises a powerful return to moments that shaped their lives. For newcomers, it’s an invitation to understand why the world once tilted on its axis when Elvis stepped onto a stage. The IMAX release will deliver towering visuals and thunderous sound—yes, expect the theater to shake when “Suspicious Minds” swells—but the Graceland premiere offers something even rarer: intimacy. You’ll be watching Elvis in the place that still carries his footsteps.
Why Graceland Changes Everything
A film like EPiC could premiere anywhere—iconic theaters, red carpets, global IMAX screens—but Graceland is not just a venue. It’s a threshold between memory and presence. To watch a celebration of Elvis’s stage power on the very grounds where he lived, laughed, and wrestled with the weight of fame is to feel the story click into place. The house becomes part of the audience. The audience becomes part of the story.
Fans often describe Graceland as “quietly loud”—a place where the silence hums with echoes. On January 8, that hum will crescendo. The early premiere turns the birthday gathering into a shared ritual: not just remembrance, but reunion—with the performer, the era, and with one another.
A Birthday Week Like No Other
Elvis’s birthday week has always been sacred ground in Memphis. Candlelight vigils glow against winter air. Tours stretch long into the day. Strangers trade stories like old friends. The mood is tender and celebratory at once—nostalgia braided with gratitude. This year, the addition of EPiC reframes the tradition. Attendees won’t just commemorate Elvis; they’ll experience him anew before the rest of the world does.
That matters. In an age of endless clips and algorithms, there’s something quietly radical about gathering in one place to watch a story unfold together. No pausing. No scrolling. Just a room full of people breathing in the same moments. It’s the closest thing to the communal magic of the concerts themselves.
The Man Before the Myth
The power of EPiC lands deeper when you remember where Elvis came from. Long before the jumpsuits and the roar of crowds, he grew up in fragile circumstances in Tupelo—born into poverty, shaped by loss, and held together by the fierce love of his mother. That early vulnerability never left him. It colored the way he sang heartbreak, the way he reached for joy, the way he gave back when success finally arrived.
This context is what gives the film its emotional gravity. EPiC doesn’t just showcase a performer at his peak; it hints at the human current beneath the spectacle. The voice that shook arenas was formed in church pews and crowded rooms. The swagger carried the memory of scarcity. When Elvis leans into a lyric, you feel the history behind it—the ache, the hope, the unguarded sincerity that made millions feel seen.
From IMAX to the Heart of Memphis
The global rollout—IMAX on February 20, wide release on February 27—will bring EPiC to fans everywhere. But the Graceland premiere is the emotional zero point. It’s where the story begins its modern life, in the presence of the place that shaped the man behind the myth. For those lucky enough to attend, the memory won’t be just “I saw it early.” It will be “I felt it where it mattered.”
Expect towering visuals later. Expect surround sound that rattles your chest. But in Memphis, expect something subtler and deeper: the sense that time has folded in on itself. That the past is close enough to touch. That the music still knows your name.
A Perfect Way to Begin 2026
For fans of Elvis, the new year won’t start with resolutions—it will start with resonance. Watching EPiC at Graceland is more than entertainment. It’s a reminder that music can be a bridge across decades, a shared language between strangers, a mirror for feelings we didn’t know how to name. Elvis’s voice continues to travel—through vinyl, through film, through memory—and it still arrives with the same charge.
The countdown is on. The anticipation is real. And Elvis’s birthday celebration is about to become truly EPiC. If you’re making the journey to Memphis this January, you won’t just be attending a premiere—you’ll be stepping into a moment that fans will talk about for years.