Forget the athletic actor who played the heroes in action films during the 1990s and 2000s. It’s a totally unrecognizable Brendan Fraser who returns to the spotlight following a long absence from the cinema to defend the main role of the drama. The Whalea morbidly obese man.
New film from filmmaker Darren Aronofsky adapted from a play of the same title by Samuel D. Hunter, The Whale (The whalein French version) tells the story of Charlie (Fraser), a literature professor weighing more than 600 pounds who can no longer leave his small apartment in Idaho, and who is forced to present his courses online in keeping his computer’s camera off.
Knowing that his days are numbered, Charlie will try to reconcile with his daughter (Sadie Sink), a rebellious teenager who still resents him for having abandoned them, her and her mother, to go live with one of his students a few years earlier. .
Brendan Fraser knew nothing regarding Samuel D. Hunter’s play until he got a call from Darren Aronofsky (The black swan, Mother!) a few months before the pandemic. The filmmaker had been struggling for quite a while to find the right actor to play this atypical character.
“When I met Darren, he didn’t even know if he was going to make the film because he was having trouble with the casting, said Brendan Fraser, during a meeting by videoconference with some journalists, the month last.
“He immediately wanted to know if I was ready for this kind of challenge. He told me it was a redemption story regarding a man who has regrets in life and wanted to reconnect with his daughter before she died.
“When I read the script, I immediately wanted to take part in this project despite the seriousness of the subject. I felt it was the right project to come back to cinema. I thought it would have more impact with the public to make a left turn when everyone was expecting me to make a right turn.
Hours of makeup
To slip into Charlie’s shoes, the 54-year-old actor had to spend between four and six hours in the makeup chair each morning before filming. To complete this physical transformation, he also had to wear prostheses weighing 300 pounds that were custom-designed in 3D by Montreal makeup specialist Adrien Morot.
In addition, to prepare for the role, the star of the films The Mummy et Journey to the Center of the Earth spent a lot of time with people from the Obesity Action Coalition, an organization that helps people with obesity.
“It was an experience that changed me physically and mentally,” says Brendan Fraser. I might remove this body at the end of the shooting day. But those who live with obesity on a daily basis are not so lucky. I know you can’t imagine what it means to live with that weight without having experienced it yourself.
“Personally, this experience gave me a lot of respect and empathy for these people. How, as a society, can we so cruelly and unjustly reject people suffering from obesity. The story told in the film takes place in a small apartment in Idaho. But it is a reality that exists everywhere across the country even in the world. »
The Whale hits theaters December 21.
