The criticism that Brendan Fraser has received over the prosthetic suit he used in the award-worthy film “The Whale” continues to mount.
In the movie directed by Darren Aronofsky, Brendan Fraser plays the role of a gay, 600-pound recluse writing instructor who is trying to reconnect with his young daughter (Sadie Sink) despite the fact that his health is failing.
Fraser’s performance has been met with acclaim and standing ovations. The Batgirl co-director Adil El Arbi congratulated the actor in Venice and said. “He Deserves the Best.”
However, many people are of the opinion that the role should have been offered to a guy who is actually overweight, and they dispute the choice to have Fraser play the part while wearing a body suit.
Fraser told people at the New York City premiere Monday night that he would “absolutely” change again for another role.
Fraser talks about the process, “I think it’s one of the more exacting ways you can create a character and body,” adding “and in this case the mandate that Charlie’s costume would respect the laws of gravity and physics as opposed to the many ways that we’ve seen that character depicted in films before as really a one-note joke, and in a costume that’s just unfair.”
“That’s a personal view,” he adds, “but we felt an obligation to ensure that it was cumbersome. It was accurate, that was what we strived for.”
Oscar buzz has already been generated for Brendan Fraser’s performance as the lead in “The Whale.”
Fraser collaborated with the Obesity Action Coalition to gain a deeper understanding of the various body types, and he had previously described his prosthetic garment as “beautiful” and “arresting” enough for him to believe that it belongs to the Tate Modern museum in London.
In an interview with Variety, Brendan talks about obesity as the only area of bias where society hasn’t changed how we talk about it, refer to people, or care about one other.
"Obesity is the last domain of prejudice that we as a society still haven't changed the way we speak about it, the way we refer to people, the way that we care about one another," says #TheWhale star Brendan Fraser. "I'm hopeful that can change." https://t.co/qi6tqO2Na8 pic.twitter.com/xu2X95aCo0
— Variety (@Variety) October 12, 2022
Adrien Morot, who was nominated for an Oscar for his work in digital makeup effects, worked closely with Darren Aronofsky on the creation of the outfit. The film merely makes little use of computer-generated imagery (CGI), and instead relies on prosthetics created through digital sculpture and 3D printing.
The director, Darren Aronofsky, stated in an interview with Variety that it was “impossible” to cast an actor capable of handling that mass level to act the role.
“It’s an impossible role to fill with a real person dealing with those issues,” the filmmaker said. “From a health perspective, it’s prohibitive… There was a chapter in the making of this film where we tried to research actors with obesity.
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?”
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Daniel Franzese, an actor who shot to popularity for his role in Mean Girls, has been one of the critics who have spoken out against The Whale. He told people he was “very conflicted” about Fraser being cast in the role.
“To finally have a chance to be in a prestige film that might be award-nominated, where stories about people who look like us are being told? That’s the dream,” said Franzese,
“So when they go time and time again and cast someone like Brendan Fraser, me and the other big queer guys, we’re like, ‘What the … ?’ We can’t take it!”
Samuel D. Hunter, who penned the film and the play on which it is based, spoke about the criticism.
“I wrote this play [upon which The Whale is based] because I felt like I’d never seen this story told,” said Hunter. “I wanted to write this character from a place of love and write a character who had this unwavering faith in human beings as his life was kind of falling apart around him.”
“Look, the history of portraying people suffering with obesity in cinema is not good, they are fundamentally objects of derision or jokes, or they’re completely one-dimensional. I understand when presented with this at face value, a lot of people have a reaction,” Hunter said, adding that he wants the film to be “an invitation” for viewers “to walk in this door and be with this guy.”
“I think you kind of have to take the invitation, you know what I mean? You have to walk in the door,” Hunter continued. “If you meet that invitation with a furrowed brow, then we’re kind of at an impasse. But, if you do take that invitation and go inside, I think you’ll find that this is the diametric opposite of the way obesity has traditionally been portrayed and dealt with in cinema.”
The Whale actor has been spotted on various occasions for film promotions and has won love and praise:
Recently, Brendan Fraser walked on the red carpet with his girlfriend, Jeanne Moore, at various New York events this week. On Monday, the couple posed for photos at the 2022 Gotham Awards at Cipriani on Wall Street.
The lovely Brendan Fraser on the red carpet at the New York premiere of The Whale tonight. 😉💖 @A24 pic.twitter.com/4XS6m2cjfI
— Letterboxd (@letterboxd) November 30, 2022
The couple then walked the red carpet together the next night, ahead of a showing of Fraser’s film in New York. Moore wore a glitzy royal blue strapless gown to the event, while Fraser sported a navy suit.
Since Breakout in 2013, Fraser has not been in a leading role before The Whale. The actor admitted to Vanity Fair that he was aware that taking on the project would not be without its difficulties but that he remained optimistic that it would assist him in determining what he was “capable” of accomplishing. He posed the question, “If there’s no risk, then why bother?”
The actor is receiving a lot of attention in this on-going awards season for his performance in “The Whale.” Depicting an obese English teacher who lives in seclusion and is frantically attempting to get in touch with his estranged daughter, Brendan Fraser has done justice to the role for many. The film also features Hong Chau and Samantha Morton in starring roles.
The Whale hits theaters on December 9.
