Re-emerging actor Brendan Fraser has responded to the overwhelming praise and multiple standing ovations that he has so far received for his lead performance in the upcoming drama, The Whale. And, of course, his response is as humble and warm as you would expect. Speaking with Variety, Fraser detailed the emotions he has felt since during the reactions to The Whale, calling the response “affirming.”

The Whale premiered at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on September 4, 2022, and has since been shown at several festivals — each one resulting in a standing ovation for Brendan Fraser. The actor, who is now in the midst of The Brenaissance, has so far been awarded the TIFF Tribute Award, the American Riviera Award, and has become the favorite for this year’s Academy Awards.

“It felt so affirming…I was emotional because it was acknowledgment that what we did is making an impact. And that kind of response feels completely new in my professional life.”

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

Based on the 2012 play by Samuel D. Hunter, The Whale will find Brendan Fraser leading the latest outing from Darren Aronofsky as Charlie, a 600-pound middle-aged man who tries to reconnect with his 17-year-old daughter. The two have grown apart after Charlie abandoned his family for his gay lover, who later died, which led to Charlie binge-eating out of pain and guilt.

Directed by Darren Aronofsky and written by Samuel D. Hunter, The Whale stars Hong Chau, Samantha Morton, and Ty Simpkins alongside Brendan Fraser, with Stranger Things star Sadie Sink starring as Ellie, Charlie’s daughter.

The Whale Has Received Some Criticism for Casting Brendan Fraser

     A24

While a lot of the response to Brendan Fraser’s casting in The Whale has been hugely positive, there has been some criticism concerning the actor playing an overweight, gay character. Fraser himself has recently responded to the disapproval saying, “I’m 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.”

Fraser continued adding, “There’s no way you can cast someone to play this job, so we had to use makeup to get there. Most of the people that are playing critique have not seen the film. So I welcome everyone to see the film because the film is about bringing empathy to characters that you don’t expect to feel for.”

The Whale director Darren Aronofsky has also offered his insight, revealing that they did attempt to find an actor that adhered closer to the character’s 600-pound appearance. “There was a chapter in the making of this film where we tried to research actors with obesity,” the filmmaker explained. “Outside of not being able to find an actor who could pull off the emotions of the role, it just becomes a crazy chase. Like, if you can’t find a 600-pound actor, is a 300-pound actor or 400-pound actor enough? … From a health perspective, it’s prohibitive. It’s an impossible role to fill with a real person dealing with those issues.”

The Whale is scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States on December 9, 2022, by A24.