Lisa Marie Presley was asked 'harsh' question why she married Michael Jackson and gave surprising answer

Diane Sawyer is being criticized for a 2003 interview she did with Lisa Marie Presley, which saw her question the singer about her marriage to Michael Jackson.

Presley, who was the only child of the late, great Elvis Presley, sadly died in January 2023 at the age of 54.

Her cause of death was later revealed as a result of a bowel obstruction.

Presley's unexpected passing sent shockwaves through Hollywood, particularly as she died just a few months after the release of the BAFTA Award-winning biopic based on her father, who was portrayed by Austin Butler.

Lisa Marie Presley died at the age of 54 in January 2023. (Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for Icelandic Glacial)

While she was the only child of a rock and roll legend, Presley was also famous in her own right and had inherited her father's talent for singing.

She also gained worldwide recognition after tying the knot to the 'King of Pop' Michael Jackson in 1994. The pair split just two years later, however.

With their short-lived marriage in mind, Presley was grilled about her romance with the 'Billy Jean' hitmaker by Diane Sawyer in 2003.

Sawyer asked her: "Why did you marry Michael Jackson? What were you doing?"

Evidently uncomfortable with the question and the way Sawyer asked it, Presley replied: "Urm, I haven't thought much about this and what I was going to say. I just figured [the answer] would fly out of my mouth."

Further on in the conversation, Sawyer noted a previous interview she did with both Jackson and Presley together and insisted that she didn't believe the couple when they said they lived together.

She also posed the question that Presley only married Jackson to get at her mother, Priscilla Presley.

The 21-year-old interview has recently resurfaced online, sparking people to share their thoughts on it.

One person went as far as labelling Diana as 'harsh'. They penned on X: "Diana was a little harsh. Still can’t believe Lisa is gone."

Another person questioned: "How does one shame another person for marrying the one of the most popular person to ever live?"

Lisa Marie Presley and Michael Jackson were married for two years. (Stephane Cardinale/Sygma via Getty Images)

"It was awful to watch," someone else said of the time at that interview aired in 2003.

Echoing similar sentiments, another X user wrote: "That was a very uncomfortable conversation."

A clip of the interview is also available on YouTube, where people have also questioned Sawyer's interview method.

"The interviewer should feel ashamed of herself," someone said.

A different person added: "Diane Sawyer was so unprofessional in this interview."

ABC has been approached for comment.