Riley Keough’s relationship with grandmother Priscilla Presley has been highly scrutinized after Lisa Marie Presley’s death — but the duo are getting back on good terms.
Keough, 34, opened up about her “complicated” family dynamic in her September 2023 Vanity Fair cover story. The profile hit the internet on Tuesday, August 8, four days after Keough was officially named the sole heir of Lisa Marie’s estate and owner of Graceland.
“When my mom passed, there was a lot of chaos in every aspect of our lives. Everything felt like the carpet had been ripped out and the floor had melted from under us,” Keough acknowledged. “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.”
She added: “We are a family, but there’s also a huge business side of our family. So I think that there was clarity that needed to be had.”
Keough said that she and Priscilla, 78, were able to find “clarity” after a lengthy legal battle. When asked where the pair stand now, Keough asserted that the drama has subsided.
“Things with Grandma will be happy,” she told the magazine. “They’ve never not been happy.”
Keough teased that discussing her relationship with her grandmother could easily turn into “a 20-minute conversation,” but she tried to keep her thoughts succinct. “There was a bit of upheaval [after my mom died], but now everything’s going to be how it was,” she added. “[Priscilla’s] a beautiful woman, and she was a huge part of creating my grandfather’s legacy and Graceland. It’s very important to her. He was the love of her life.”
Priscilla was married to the late Elvis Presley from 1967 to 1973. After the musician’s death in 1977, Lisa Marie — Priscilla and Elvis’ only child — inherited Graceland. The property, however, remained incredibly special to Priscilla.
“At the end of the day, all she wants is to love and protect Graceland and the Presley family and the legacy,” Keough said of her grandmother. “That’s her whole life. So it’s a big responsibility she has tried to take on. None of that stuff has really ever been a part of our relationship prior. She’s just been my grandma. … Sharing Graceland with the world was her idea from the start.”
Keough reflected on her time spent at Graceland as a child, remembering “a few times that we slept there.” The Memphis landmark is open to the public, apart from the second floor — the site of Elvis’ fatal heart attack.
“The tours would start in the morning, and we would hide upstairs until they were over,” Keough recalled. “The security would bring us breakfast. It’s actually such a great memory. We would order sausage and biscuits, and hide until the tourists finished.”
After Lisa Marie died in January at age 54, Priscilla contested her daughter’s will and claimed that a 2016 amendment replacing her as the trustee was forged. Priscilla alleged that she was never informed of the change that placed Keough and her late brother, Benjamin Keough, in charge of the estate.
Priscilla and Riley agreed to settle the dispute in May, with Priscilla receiving a one-time sum of $1 million from the account. Lisa Marie’s 14-year-old twin daughters, Finley and Harper, were named sub-trustees.
At the time, a source exclusively told Us Weekly that Riley and Priscilla “are at peace in their relationship” following the “stressful ordeal,” adding, “There was a lot of back and forth, but they reached a middle ground that makes them both happy.”
