One of the first films I ever remember seeing is The Mummy starring Brendan Fraser as the cool, but relatable adventurer Rick O’Connell. I immediately fell in love with the series of films, binging them repeatedly through my childhood and early teens – even the not-so-great The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. He then followed those up with Journey to the Centre of the Earth, based on the Jules Verne novel, and Furry Vengeance for some reason. And then… he disappeared from Hollywood.
The reason for Fraser’s blacklisting from Hollywood is sad. We won’t delve too far into it here, but back in the late 2000s Fraser spoke out against sexual assault that he experienced by a top Hollywood executive. Fraser’s story runs in-line with, and even pre-dates the #MeToo movement. While there’s still a long way to go, we’re glad that Hollywood, and the film industry as a whole, is beginning to change for the better, and we’re very glad that Brendan Fraser is back. You can read the full story here.
The Return of Brendan Fraser
I first noticed Brendan Fraser’s return to large-scale productions back in 2018, when a familiar voice made its way into the DC Comics’ show Titans. Fraser appeared in one episode of Titans as Cliff Steele, aka ‘Robotman’, a former racing driver who’s conscious was transferred to a robotic body after a life-threatening crash. The acclaim Fraser, and the rest of the cast who made up the Doom Patrol in that episode, received led to their own spin-off show. DC’s Doom Patrol initially released on DC Universe, a streaming app exclusively for DC Comics properties. The critically acclaimed show is currently in its 4th season, which streams weekly on HBO Max.
Despite his role in Titans and Doom Patrol consisting of voice work, with the occasional on-set scene in flashbacks, Fraser received tons of praise from critics and fans – who were glad to see him back – for his emotional performance as the existential robot.
While he was never completely out of work between 2008’s The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor and 2018’s Titans, Fraser rarely appeared in the type of ‘mainstream’ projects that he was lorded for in the height of his career. In 2016 he appeared in 6 episodes of Showtime’s The Affair, and 8 episodes of Trust in 2018, both well-reviewed shows but still nowhere near the stardom he used to hold.
Then in 2022, Fraser’s face hit the big screen once again in the A24 production The Whale as Charlie, a morbidly obese writing lecturer desperate to reconnect with his daughter in the last week of his life. The Whale blew up in the public eye, thanks in part to the drastic change in Fraser’s appearance from the handsome action hero in The Mummy, to an obese, sofa-bound teacher. The incredible film, directed by Daren Aronofsky (Mother & Black Swan), received dozens of awards nominations from smaller indie awards to the Oscars, including a best performance Academy Award nomination for Brendan Fraser. His heart-warming, and gut-wrenching, performance as Charlie has thrusted Fraser back into the limelight once more, and opened doors to amazing future opportunities that any actor would jump on.
Brendan Fraser’s Future Projects
With the critical success of The Whale, one of the best films of 2022, it looks like Fraser’s star power in Hollywood is only going to rise in the future. Fraser currently has three (publicly announced) projects in the works. The first is a chance to work with the cinema legend that is Martin Scorsese. Fraser is set to appear in Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, based on the novel by David Grann. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant) and Lily Gladstone (Billions), as well as Robert DeNiro (Taxi Driver), Jesse Plemons (The Irishman) and John Lithgow (The World According to Garp), and set for release in May 2023.
Fraser is also set to star in Dalibor Stach’s Behind the Curtain of Night, where Fraser’s character Ronay can see his past lives, after being declared medically dead twice. Behind the Curtain of Night also stars Marcia Cross (Desperate Housewives) and Dawn Olivieri (Yellowstone). Finally, Fraser is set to star alongside Josh Brolin (Deadpool 2 & The Goonies) in Brothers, directed by Max Barbakow (Palm Springs). The plot of the film is being kept tightly under wraps, but features a star studded cast of Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones), Glenn Close (Fatal Attraction) and Taylour Paige (Zola).
Did you know that The Whale was nominated for 4 BAFTA’s! To see if they won, you can click HERE for our full list of winner from the 2023 BAFTA Awards.
