Brendan Fraser has been a well-known face in Hollywood for over three decades. He has starred in a variety of movies, ranging from comedies to action-packed adventures.
Despite his varied career, it was not until recently that he received the recognition he truly deserved with his Oscar-winning performance in Darren Aronofsky’s latest film, The Whale.
Born in Indianapolis in 1968, Fraser began his acting career in the early 1990s. His first significant role was in the 1992 movie Encino Man, in which he played the lead character Link. Despite mixed reviews from critics, the movie was a box office success and gave Fraser a platform to showcase his talents.
Fraser’s next significant role came in the form of George of the Jungle in 1997, which was a live-action adaptation of the popular animated television series. Fraser’s portrayal of the titular character was widely praised, and the movie became a commercial success. Following this success, Fraser was then cast in the adventure movie The Mummy in 1999, which was a massive hit at the box office and spawned a successful franchise.
Fraser continued to star in numerous movies throughout the early 2000s, including Bedazzled, Monkeybone, and Crash, among others. However, it was his role in the 2004 movie Crash that received critical acclaim. The movie, which explored themes of racism and prejudice in modern-day Los Angeles, featured a star-studded cast, including Sandra Bullock and Don Cheadle. Fraser’s performance as District Attorney Rick Cabot received positive reviews, and the movie won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2005.
Career Setbacks
Despite his success in Crash, Fraser’s career began to stall in the mid-2000s. Brendan Fraser took a break from acting for several years due to a variety of personal and health-related issues. In a 2018 interview with GQ, Fraser revealed that he had been dealing with several physical ailments, including a herniated disc, a vocal cord injury, and a condition called “numbness and tingling,” which required him to undergo multiple surgeries. He also opened up about a traumatic incident that occurred in 2003, in which he was allegedly sexually assaulted by Philip Berk, the former president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), which hosts the Golden Globe Awards.
Fraser’s alleged assault by Berk at the 2003 Golden Globe Awards has been widely reported in the media. In his GQ interview, Fraser said that the incident left him feeling depressed and reclusive, and that it had a lasting impact on his career. He also stated that he felt “dehumanized” by the experience, and that he believed it was one of the reasons why his career had stalled.
He starred in a few high-profile movies, such as Journey to the Center of the Earth and Inkheart, but they failed to match the success of his earlier works. Fraser continued to work steadily in Hollywood throughout the 2010s, but his roles were largely supporting or minor.
The Whale
In 2021, Fraser received critical acclaim for his role in the movie The Whale at the Venice Film Festival. The movie is an adaptation of a play of the same name by Samuel D. Hunter and tells the story of a 600-pound man named Charlie who is confined to his apartment, trying to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter. The film, which was directed by Darren Aronofsky, received positive reviews, with many critics praising Fraser’s performance. Fraser’s portrayal of Charlie has been described as deeply empathetic and emotionally raw, and the performance has been called the best of his career.
This has led to Brendan Fraser’s first Oscar nomination and win for Best Actor in a Leading Role for The Whale, a well-deserved recognition of his immense talent. It is also a testament to his resilience and dedication to his craft, as he has continued to work hard and deliver exceptional performances despite the ups and downs of his career.
Brendan Fraser’s film career has been a long and varied one, with a mix of both critical and commercial successes. However, it is his recent performance that truly demonstrates his depth as an actor and his performance as one of years best.
