Brendan Fraser on Oscar buzz and the importance of authenticity in The Whale - Digital Trends

Hollywood loves a bully comeback story, particularly erstwhile that histrion is arsenic benignant and graceful arsenic Brendan Fraser. Thirty years ago, Fraser starred successful Encino Man and School Ties, establishing himself arsenic a starring antheral that would yet header blockbusters, similar George of the Jungle and The Mummy, for the adjacent 15 years. Although Fraser’s nationalist beingness diminished, his endowment ne'er disappeared arsenic the satellite rediscovers his prima powerfulness again successful The Whale.

Directed by Darren Aronofsky, Fraser stars arsenic Charlie, a 600-pound recluse watching his beingness gaffe distant successful the confines of his two-bedroom apartment. As his wellness deteriorates, Charlie attempts to reconnect with his teenage daughter, Ellie (Sadie Sink), who hates him with each fibre of her being. Written by Samuel D. Hunter, who besides penned the play that inspired the film, The Whale is a tragic depiction of grief arsenic a antheral seeks to reconcile with his past. It’s an incredible show from Fraser, whose resurgence could extremity with the phrase, “And the Oscar goes to …”

In an interrogation with Digital Trends, Fraser and Hunter explicate the value of telling an authentic communicative astir addiction and disease. Plus, Fraser shares what connection helium hopes the assemblage volition instrumentality distant from the film.

Note: This interrogation has been edited for magnitude and clarity. 

Digital Trends: Brendan, you mentioned you did not cognize overmuch astir the movie oregon the play going into your archetypal gathering with Darren. I judge you didn’t adjacent person a publication to read. When you started to larn much astir the task successful that archetypal meeting, what caught your eye?

Brendan Fraser: That we would beryllium creating this quality successful a mode that hasn’t been done successful films before. To specify, he’s a antheral whose assemblage is hundreds and hundreds of pounds. It would require, whether it’s maine oregon immoderate different actor, to deterioration a costume, makeup, and apparatus applications to make that idiosyncratic authentically.

I watched a batch of movies wherever value summation suits were used, and this is not 1 of those. This 1 respects gravity and physics and was created done a integer process that you could people the molds from truthful determination was implicit consistency. There was precise small integer attraction done to make Charlie.

That was a quality astir a carnal challenge. Darren didn’t cognize if helium was going to marque the movie oregon not conscionable based connected those elements due to the fact that if you get it wrong, we don’t person a movie. We don’t person a movie if the archetypal constitution trial wasn’t close successful that frozen gathering successful the Protozoa offices erstwhile we archetypal enactment everything on.

If it was wrong, you can’t bash it, but that wasn’t the case. And erstwhile we got that down, past it’s conscionable a substance of attending to the communicative points, rehearsing arsenic we did for 3 weeks, and doing our honorable champion to attack the portion with arsenic overmuch authenticity and vulnerability arsenic we could muster.

Sam, this is simply a profoundly idiosyncratic communicative to you. I cognize you’re revisiting immoderate acheronian days successful your life. When you were approached to constitute the screenplay, was determination ever a constituent wherever you thought to yourself, “I can’t spell done with this again. I don’t privation to relive these moments?”

Samuel D. Hunter: I deliberation penning the play and past having the play produced was incredibly cathartic for me. Not to beryllium excessively neat astir it, but similar I mislaid a clump of value close aft the play got produced successful New York. I deliberation I had seen it done capable and worked connected it capable and worked with capable collaborators that I could benignant of look astatine it, I don’t privation to accidental objectively due to the fact that it’s ever going to consciousness vulnerable.

It’s ever going to consciousness very, precise adjacent to me, but I was nervous. Handing it implicit to idiosyncratic connected movie is simply a precise antithetic process. You know, plays are precise ephemeral. It’s 1 of the things I emotion astir them is because, you know, you spot them arsenic they’re happening.

Fraser: It lives.

Hunter: [Laughs] Yeah, but movie is etched successful marble, you know? So I knew that we had to get it right. Darren knew we had to get it right, and it took a decennary to find that guy, and boy, did we find that guy. Boy, did we find that guy. Thank God.

L - R) Brendan Fraser/Courtesy of A24

Brendan, it’s nary concealed that this show is going to beryllium a large contender this awards season, and I respect that you’re openly talking astir however this is your shot, and you beryllium it to yourself, the film, and the fans to truly spell for it. I conscionable wanted to cognize wherefore you consciousness truthful powerfully astir it that way, to truly spell for it.

Fraser: This is simply a communicative astir a antheral who could different beryllium truthful easy dismissed, and sadly is truthful often. We, arsenic a society, person a agelong mode to go, and I deliberation this is simply a bully commencement toward ameliorating the mode that we talk of [and] respect those who unrecorded with obesity, which is simply a illness and often the origin being an addiction. I learned that from having worked astatine the Obesity Action Coalition and the counsel that they gave me, and I earned their spot and person borne a work to dainty the taxable with dignity and respect.

I could bash that due to the fact that of the spot of the filmmaking successful this story. Insofar arsenic my fondest hope, I deliberation we tin bash better. Anyone who comes into this movie, by the story’s end, I’m beauteous definite they’re going to rethink oregon reorient the beliefs oregon prejudices that they whitethorn person upheld earlier they walked into this film. The fondest anticipation that we person is to perchance alteration immoderate hearts and minds.

Well, I deliberation you did conscionable that.

Fraser: I’ve got to bash what I tin bash to enactment that.

The Whale opens successful theaters connected December 9. 

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