Taylor Swift stepped away from the camera in her new “Elizabeth Taylor” music video.
AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS – JULY 05: Taylor Swift performs onstage during “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at Johan Cruijff Arena on July 05, 2024 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. (Photo by Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
Instead of starring in the Apple Music and Spotify Premium exclusive video, as the pop star typically does, she opted to use clips from the Hollywood icon’s films. The clips include shots from films including “Cleopatra,” “Father of the Bride,” “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” “A Place in the Sun,” “Giant,” “Suddenly, Last Summer,” “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” “Julia Misbehaves” and the late ’60s cult favorite “Boom!” according to Variety.
Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011), British actress, wearing a green sleeveless low-cut dress, with a white fur wrap on the arm of the armchair in which she sits, circa 1950. (Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images)
While the video is currently only available to users who pay for one of the two audio streaming platforms, fans may soon be able to watch the video for free. Swift’s “Opalite” music video made its way to YouTube’s free tier just two days after it was initially released. The same may end up being true about “Elizabeth Taylor,” although we don’t know for certain.
Actress Elizabeth Taylor (1932 – 2011) stars in the MGM film, ‘Cat On A Hot Tin Roof’, 1958. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)
Lyrics in the song include clear references to the “Cleopatra” star’s life, such as “I’ll cry my eyes violet,” which refers to the actress’s unique eye color, while “All my white diamonds and lovers are forever” is a call-out to her fragrance line, White Diamonds.
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE – OCTOBER 03: A general view of a Nashville area Starbucks that has been transformed into a Starbies pop up celebrating the release of Taylor Swift’s new album “The Life Of A Showgirl” on October 03, 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)
“Elizabeth Taylor” is the second track on Swift’s recent album, “The Life of a Showgirl.” And yes, the Grammy winner did get permission from the real Elizabeth Taylor’s estate. During an interview on the “Radio 2 Breakfast Show,” host Scott Mills asked, “Do you need to warn people when you mention them in songs?” Swift replied, “If they’re real people. Yeah.”
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 26: (FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY) Taylor Swift accepts the Pop Album of the Year award onstage at the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theatre on March 26, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartRadio)
She then added, “If it’s like, Elizabeth Taylor, we go to their family and her estate and let them know. And they were lovely about it.”
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