Brendan Fraser’s big comeback! Nineties heartthrob famous for George of the Jungle and Encino Man transforms into 600lb recluse for new film The Whale as he returns to Hollywood
- Brandan Fraser has transformed into a 600 pound man for his new film The Whale as he makes a career comeback
- In a first look image from The Whale, Fraser has undergone a significant physical transformation in order to play an obese man
- The A24 film was directed by Darren Aronofsky and sees Fraser play a man ‘living with obesity’ and ‘struggling to reconnect with his 17-year-old daughter’, according to Variety
- Fraser previously discussed his role in the film during an interview with Unilad , where he discussed the ‘extensive’ and ‘cumbersome’ wardrobe and predicted the role would make a ‘lasting impression’
- While the actor is currently enjoying a career renaissance, he has experienced lows in his career and personal life
- In 2018 Brendan opened up about how a sexual assault by an influential Hollywood figure and years of doing his own stunts virtually destroyed his movie career
Nineties heartthrob Brandan Fraser has transformed into a 600 pound man for his new film The Whale.
In a first look image from The Whale, Fraser has undergone a significant physical transformation in order to play an obese man.
Fraser, 53, looks worlds away from the sculpted actor fans remember him as in George Of The Jungle and Encino Man.
Big new role: Nineties heartthrob Brandan Fraser has transformed into a 600 pound man for his new film The Whale amid his return to Hollywood
Chiseled: Fraser looks worlds away from the hunk the world once knew him as in George of the Jungle (Pictured above in 1997)
The A24 film was directed by Darren Aronofsky and sees Fraser play a man ‘living with obesity’ and ‘struggling to reconnect with his 17-year-old daughter’, according to Variety. The actor wore prosthetics in order to achieve the look, according IndieWire.
An adaptation of the 2012 play The Whale by Samuel D. Hunter, the drama will have its world premiere at the 2022 Venice Film Festival. No release date has been set as of yet.
Fraser previously discussed his role in the film during an interview with Unilad, where he discussed the ‘extensive’ and ‘cumbersome’ wardrobe and predicted the role would make a ‘lasting impression.’
‘It’s gonna be like something you haven’t seen before,’ Fraser told the outlet year. ‘That’s really all I can tell you…The wardrobe and costume was extensive, seamless, cumbersome. This is certainly far removed from anything I’ve ever done but not to be coy…I do know it’s going to make a lasting impression.’
Previously: Fraser pictured in the 1997 film George of the Jungle
The film is set to be Fraser’s first leading role in nearly 10 years, following the release of his 2013 direct-to-DVD action film Breakout.
Already a household name thanks to his starring role in Tarzan spoof George Of The Jungle, Fraser became a screen icon after playing swashbuckling Richard ‘Rich’ O’Connell in The Mummy franchise.
The actor is now enjoying a career renaissance after stepping away from the spotlight, with roles in Batgirl and a prominent role in the new Martin Scorsese film Killers of the Flower Moon.
The film star also has a reputation for being super down-to-earth with fans.
An adaptation of the 2012 play The Whale by Samuel D. Hunter, the drama will have its world premiere at the 2022 Venice Film Festival. No release date has been set as of yet; pictured June 2021
Earlier this year Fraser made a fan’s day when he sweetly fist bumped her at a meet-and-greet at Calgary Expo in Canada this week.
Brendan left one girl with a huge smile on her face thanks to their pleasant interaction in which she thanked him for making her ‘childhood so awesome’.
It hasn’t always been an easy road for Fraser, who has been open about his career lows.
In 2018 Brendan opened up about how a sexual assault by an influential Hollywood figure and years of doing his own stunts virtually destroyed his movie career.
Throwback: Fraser in the 1992 film Encino Man
The actor, who was a household name in the 1990s and 2000s with hits such as George of the Jungle and the Mummy franchise, told GQ in a lengthy profile about how there had been a steady decline of acting roles in recent years.
Several factors seem to have contributed including a failing marriage, a growing list of health problems and a spiral into depression.
Fraser detailed in the profile for the first that he was sexually harassed in 2003 by the then-president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Philip Berk.
The alleged incident occurred in 2003 at the Beverly Hills Hotel while they were having lunch.
‘His left hand reaches around, grabs my a** cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint,’ he told GQ,
Movie star: Fraser was a household name in the 1990s and 2000s with hits such as George of the Jungle and the Mummy franchise
Coming attractions: A24 provided a first look of The Whale as it revealed its premiere at the 79th Venice Film Festival
‘And he starts moving it around. I felt ill. I felt like a little kid. I felt like there was a ball in my throat. I thought I was going to cry.’
After immediately leaving the luncheon, Fraser told his then-wife Afton Smith of the interaction but otherwise remained silent for fear of embarrassment and career damage.
While he did not go public, about the incident he eventually did report it to the HFPA, but their response was clear: Fraser was rarely invited back to the Globes after 2003.
In the article, Berk says he wrote a letter to Fraser about the incident but ‘admitted no wrongdoing.’
Recent red carpet: Fraser pictured in New York in June 2021
Fraser said that he became depressed and he started telling himself he deserved what had happened to him.
‘I was blaming myself and I was miserable – because I was saying: “This is nothing; this guy reached around and he copped a feel”. That summer wore on – and I can’t remember what I went on to work on next.’
Fraser also says that the roles he was in took a physical toll on him. His physical prime from 1997’s ‘George of the Jungle’ was fast-fading.
Earlier this year Fraser made a fan’s day when he sweetly fist bumped her at a meet-and-greet at Calgary Expo in Canada this week
Brendan left one girl with a huge smile on her face thanks to their pleasant interaction in which she thanked him for making her ‘childhood so awesome’
‘By the time I did the third Mummy picture in China [in 2008], I was put together with tape and ice…’cause they’re small and light and they can fit under your clothes. I was building an exoskeleton for myself daily.’
Eventually the injuries he received while performing his stunts required multiple surgeries:
He needed a lumbar laminectomy, a surgery that removes the back portion of a vertebra in the lower back, to create more room within the spinal canal.
However, it didn’t take and it had to be done again a year later. He underwent a partial knee replacement, more back surgery involving bolting various compressed spinal pads together and even surgery to repair his vocal cords.
Fraser said he was in and out of hospitals for almost seven years.
Fraser was previously married to actress Afton Smith from 1998 to 2008. They share sons Leland Francis Fraser, 16, Holden Fletcher Fraser, 17, and Griffin Arthur Fraser, 19.
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