Brendan Fraser Feels ‘The Whale’ Will Change Hearts Over ‘Weight Bias’

Brendan Fraser feels lucky to have been a part of a film that "touches on weight bias." The Whale star was nominated for his role as a reclusive college professor struggling with obesity. Speaking on Friday's (January 27) episode of Lorraine, Fraser, 54, said that after a decades-long film career, he doesn't feel he has anything to prove anymore.

He said, "I have three kids, I know what it means to have all the love I ever need in my life and I have nothing to prove. You make one [film] for fun, for money for prestige and if you're lucky you get to make one at all and the fact I get to be a part of a film that's hopefully changing some hearts and touches on weight bias."

The Mummy alum added, "There's harm to be done by the way we speak to each other." Brendan, who had to wear a 50-330-pound prosthetic suit for his 600-pound character in the film, insisted it portrays obesity with sensitivity. "So often we've seen weight game costumes that's like Halloween costumes. This is not that. The price itself to create the film was interesting, it was during covid. I was scanned digitally in my driveway. then a mold was made."

Brendan spent as much as six hours in the makeup chair each day to fully transform into the character. As we previously reported, Fraser shared that by wearing his prosthetic suit, he "developed muscles I did not know I had. I even felt a sense of vertigo at the end of the day when all the appliances were removed; it was like stepping off the dock onto a boat in Venice. That [sense of] undulating. It gave me appreciation for those whose bodies are similar. You need to be an incredibly strong person, mentally and physically, to inhabit that physical being.”

Meanwhile, Brendan also spoke to Digital Spy about his role in the film, saying the awards buzz around him is "rewarding." The actor told the publication, "I have a feeling of excited anticipation about what could happen. But I don't know. No one does. I have an open mind, and I'm looking forward to finding out where this is going to take us. I'm glad it found us where we are now."

On taking on this role after a six-year acting hiatus, Fraser said he "felt really inspired. And I also felt like it was something I wanted to do so bad, I could feel it in my bones. And the feeling of also having had that many times before in my life – in my career – and seeing that ship sail enough times."

He added, "I didn't know if it was really going to come together. It was almost a 'too good to be true' kind of feeling until we really got underway. And it never really left me in some ways, until I saw it myself, alone, for the first time. And my jaw dropped."

The Whale is currently in theaters.

Want to watch the films nominated for the 2023 Academy Awards before the event takes place in March? Well, look no further! We have compiled a list of how to stream the Oscar-nominated films. The Banshees of Inisherin, Elvis, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Fabelmans, Tár and Top Gun: Maverick dominated the nominations, but we included lots of other films that scored nominations.

One film that you can't stream - yet - is The Whale, which got Brendan Fraser a Best Actor nomination. The film was just released this December, so it is most likely to stay in theaters through the awards ceremony. Director Darren Aronofsky recently confirmed on Instagram that the film “WILL NOT be streaming anytime soon.”

Babylon was also released at the end of December, so it is not available on streamers yet, but when it does, it will most likely be available on Paramount+, as it is a Paramount Pictures property. Avatar: The Way of Water is still playing in theaters and not yet streaming, but viewers can expect to see it on Disney+ in the future. Living and Women Talking are also currently playing in theaters, as they were released in late December.

The 95th Oscars will take place Sunday, March 12 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood with host Jimmy Kimmel. This will be Kimmel’s third time hosting, having hosted the Oscars in both 2017 and 2018. Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner of White Cherry Entertainment are serving as executive producers and showrunners, with Weiss also directing the show for the eighth consecutive year. The awards can be watched live on ABC and televised in over 200 territories worldwide.

Take a look below at how to watch this year's Oscar-nominated films:

Arriving on Disney+ on Feb. 1.

Available to stream on HBO Max, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video.

Available to stream on Paramount+, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video.

Available to stream on HBO Max and Hulu.

Available on Peacock, or to rent on Amazon Prime Video and AppleTV+.

Available on Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max and Hulu.

Streaming on Netflix.

Streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Paramount+.

As of right now, the film is only available to purchase on streamers like Amazon Prime Video and AppleTV+.

Streaming on Netflix.

Available to rent on streamers like AppleTV+ and YouTube.

Available to rent on streamers like AppleTV+ and Amazon Prime Video.

Streaming on AppleTV+.

Available on Amazon Prime Video.

Watch it on Netflix.

Rent it on AppleTV+ and Amazon Prime Video.

Streaming on Disney+.

Watch it on Netflix.

Available to watch on Netflix.

Available to rent on AppleTV+ and Amazon Prime Video.