Everyone is happy and embracing actor Brendan Fraser’s triumphant return to the Hollywood limelight, especially his new co-stars. In fact, it appears Fraser was so nice on the set of The Whale that it actually made it harder for other actors’ to carry out their more intense scenes.
Fraser is receiving rave reviews for his latest film Darren Aronofsky’s newest flick, even earning himself several standing ovations at various film festival premieres. Samantha Morton, who plays Fraser’s ex-wife in the film, told Variety had a hard time fighting with Fraser on screen because he was just so nice in real life.
“He’s an angel, really. Every time Darren would yell, ‘cut,’ I’d have to move away so I could do the scene again.”
While Morton kept it professional and did her job as an actor “all [she] wanted to do was go and hug him.”
Morton’s sentiments are understandable when a co-star is as generous as Fraser. Per Variety, Fraser is known for being “generous and solicitous.” He even bought breakfast for the cast and crew of Gods and Monsters and, on the first day of filming The Whale, he brought a baby gift for actress Hong Chau who recently became a new mom.
The Whale is a dramatic film based on a play of the same name by Samuel D. Hunter, with Hunter adapting his play for the screen. Fraser plays Charlie, a 600-pound gay man who left his family for his lover who then passed away. On the back of the loss, Charlie began overeating to self-medicate his depression. The film centers on Charlie’s journey to reconnect with his estranged 17-year-old daughter Ellie, played by Stranger Things star Sadie Sink.
The Whale is set to be released in the United States on Dec. 9, 2022