Brendan Fraser: Tragic life, missing for 10 years and a brilliant rise after "gaining" 272kg

The Oscar 2023 Golden Statue for the "Best Actor" category proves the acting talent of actor Brendan Fraser, and at the same time saves his seemingly ended career.

The 95th Academy Awards ceremony ended with a result that was not too surprising but completely deserved. In particular, some victories can be predicted for a long time because of the support from many audiences and experts. A typical example is the case of Brendan Fraser with the excellent male lead statue.

This year, the actor has a spectacular return with a heavy role in the psychological film The Whale by director Darren Aronofsky - who did Black Swan (2010), mother! (2017). Not only surprised viewers with shocking visuals, Brendan Fraser also completely conquered the critics with his honest and emotional acting.

Gay roles "makeover"

In The Whale , Brendan Fraser plays Charlie - a British professor, suffering from obesity, facing severe health deterioration when weighing up to 272kg. Because of his shame about his appearance, he decided to live a reclusive life, daily communicating with students through online classes but without turning on the webcam.

The movie is heavy and doesn't have much action. Throughout the duration of 117 minutes, Charlie's fate and personality were only dissected through Brendan Fraser's lines and expressions.

The character is a gay man who used to have a wife and children but abandoned his family to follow the call of love. When her boyfriend died, Charlie had a mental breakdown and gradually sank into grief. His friend every day is the nurse Liz (Hong Chau) and all kinds of fast food as a cure for the soul. Even his biological daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink) also wished him a healthy death soon.

Brendan Fraser's incarnation made a strong impression on viewers, and received a "rain" of compliments from critics. The role brought the actor the most acting nominations in his career. Before the Oscars, he won important awards such as: Critics Choice Awards (American Association of Broadcast Film Critics - Canada), Hollywood Film Awards, and especially SAG (American Screen Actors Guild Award).

On NBC Los Angeles , Aronofsky once shared that he cherished for a decade to make a film but had difficulty because he could not find the main actor. With the director, almost no one is strong enough to play a "heavyweight" role like Charlie. It was not until he saw Brendan Fraser appear in the trailer for the movie Journey To The End Of The Night (2006), that Aronofsky decided to put his faith in the actor.

However, from the fateful moment to the movie's release, it took almost 16 years. During that time, Brendan Fraser's name gradually sank into oblivion. Therefore, the role of Charlie in The Whale is considered a "makeover" for a lifetime, helping to save the star's long-frozen career, born in 1968.

Journey back to glory

Brendan Fraser is not a strange face to Vietnamese audiences. According to News , Brendan James Fraser was born into a family of three brothers. He is fluent in English and French because he lived in many countries, before settling completely in the US. The news site said that moving to many places helped him hone his life skills, bringing sophistication in movies. After graduating from high school in 1990, Fraser went to New York to pursue acting.

During the 1990s, the actor participated in many films and became a star through his role in The Mummy . Released in 1999, the work earned more than 410 million USD, many times higher than the 80 million USD budget, paving the way for many popular sequels to be born.

In 2002, the star also attracted attention when he came to Vietnam to play The Quiet American - a dramatic film project led by veteran director Phillip Noyce. The work was filmed in many locations such as Hanoi, Ninh Binh, Ho Chi Minh City and Hoi An. Brendan Fraser also had the opportunity to leave a beautiful mark in the hearts of Vietnamese fans.

With a handsome face and attractive appearance, Brendan Fraser quickly received much love from the audience, having "fascinated" many young women.

However, since his appearance with Harrison Ford in Extraordinary Measures (2010), Brendan Fraser's career has completely gone downhill. He almost only participated in voicing a number of TV projects, playing supporting roles that no one remembers.

In 2018, the actor suddenly reappeared with a shocking statement, revealing that the cause of his career influence was psychological trauma. He was once abused by Philip Berk - the current president of HFPA (Hollywood Foreign Press Association) - but did not dare to share it with anyone.

In his youth, Fraser had a handsome and romantic appearance, but could not maintain his beauty over the years due to illness and underwent many surgeries, including spinal surgery. The first surgery was unsuccessful, so he had to undergo long-term therapy. Not only that, the actor has a disease of the larynx. He was in and out of the hospital a lot for treatment to relieve pressure on the spinal cord, nerves, and a partial knee replacement.

After that, the departure of his mother and the divorce with his wife made the actor fall into a state of depression, seriously affecting his health and filming work. Now, ready to return, Fraser is excited to introduce his new girlfriend Jeanne Moore to everyone.

Brendan Fraser's story, though more or less influenced the fans, could not conquer the audience with the bravery of acting in The Whale.

At the Oscar race 2023, he is considered a bright candidate with a high probability of winning, although his opponent Austin Butler is also very heavy. The fact that Fraser was named not only proved his talent, but also brought him back to the position of a star, respected by everyone.

On the award stage, Brendan Fraser couldn't help but be touched by the Oscar golden statue. Unlike his colleagues Duong Tu Quynh or Quan Ke Huy, the actor did not send big messages, simply taking an important moment to thank the audience, co-stars and relatives.

It can be said that the story of his fate and convincing victory itself is enough to inspire anyone. Because few people dare to persistently pursue their career, putting aside the past to find the glory like how Brendan Fraser did.

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