Brendan Fraser Responds To Controversy Over His New Movie
Brendan Fraser has responded to criticism of playing the role of a 600-pound man in The Whale.
There are a ton of people who have already seen the early screenings of Brendan Fraser in The Whale and are now upset that an actor of large size was not chosen for the protagonist, and instead, Fraser used what is known as a “fat suit” to portray a 600-pound man. Fraser has responded to this criticism by stating “I am not a small man, and I don’t know what the metric is to qualify to play the role. I only know that I had to give as honest a performance as I can.”
Darren Aronofsky, director of The Whale, also responded to the heavy critics of his new film, as he stated, “There’s no way you can cast someone to play this job, so we had to use makeup to get there.” That is certainly true, and we wouldn’t imagine that finding a 600-pound person would be possible to find, so we could assume that Brendan Fraser plays that role to the best of his ability without attempting to be disrespectful in any way possible.
Once people see Brendan Fraser in The Whale, their tune could change, which is something that Aronofsky has also expressed. He expressed that many of the people that are criticizing the film have not yet seen it, and he has invited them to watch the film before making any rash judgments about representation or lack thereof. The Whale had been shown at the Venice Film Festival, which occurred back in August, and saw Fraser and the rest of the cast and crew treated to a six-minute standing ovation for the film.
Quite honestly, we cannot wait to see this film when it drops on December 9th, and with A24 producing the film, we would imagine that the story of the film is going to be quite a journey. Brendan Fraser has also stated that he hopes The Whale is a film that can effectively cause a change in society regarding how people of larger stature are treated, which is something that great art can achieve. At least the man understands the critics and why people are upset but also welcomes those people to watch the art that has been delivered.
Brendan Fraser is going through his comeback to acting, and he has already been lauded for his performance in The Whale, leaving many to state that he could be in contention for an Academy Award nomination. The man has always been nothing short of respectful and kind in his interviews and in his life, and he has opened up to the world about the struggles that caused him to step away from his career. Now that he has returned, we hope that the art he engages in can be given the fair chance that it should.
The Whale will officially premiere on December 9th, and from the early screenings and words from those who have seen it, the film might be the one that lands Brendan Fraser his first Academy Award nomination. While it might have been difficult to find a 600-pound man to be cast in this movie, we would imagine that Fraser approached the role with the utmost respect. Representation certainly matters in this world, but sometimes that representation can be impossible to achieve, and we should welcome art for what it is.
