While insisting that the family are now 'happy,' Elvis Presley's granddaughter gets honest about her battle with grandmother Priscilla Presley over Lisa Mary's will.
- Aug 9, 2023
AceShowbiz - Riley Keough admits she and her grandmother Priscilla Presley's relationship experienced "a bit of upheaval" while they battled over Lisa Marie Presley's will. The actress, 34, was heartbroken by her mum's death aged 54 in January and as left fighting her grandmum Priscilla, 78, after she contested her daughter's will - disputing a 2016 amendment removing her as co-trustee and naming Keough and her brother Benjamin, who has since died, instead.
In a cover interview with Vanity Fair magazine, Riley said their relationship is now "happy," but admitted Lisa Marie's death caused a "lot of chaos" in the family. "I'm trying to think of a way to answer it that's not a 20-minute conversation," she said when asked about the issue.
"There was a bit of upheaval, but now everything's going to be how it was. Anything that would suggest otherwise in the press makes me sad because, at the end of the day, all (Priscilla) wants is to love and protect Graceland and the Presley family and the legacy."
Riley added "things with Grandma will be happy" now that "clarity has been had," noting that she and Priscilla had "never not been happy." She added about the fallout from Lisa Marie's death, "Everything felt like the carpet had been ripped out and the floor had melted from under us."
"Everyone was in a bit of a panic to understand how we move forward, and it just took a minute to understand the details of the situation, because it's complicated. We are a family, but there's also a huge business side of our family."
After a months-long dispute, Keough agreed to give her grandma $1 million to become the sole trustee, as well as $400,000 to cover legal fees.
While Lisa Marie's cause of death was not known at the time, it has since been revealed that she died of a bowel obstruction.
Riley said, "I did feel like there was a choice in front of me to give up and let this event take me out or have the courage to work through it. I started trying to move through it and not let it take me out."
