Brendan Fraser Apologizes to the City of San Francisco for George of the Jungle Stunt
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Miikka Skaffari/Getty; Buena Vista Pictures
Brendan Fraser is making a mea culpa.
The Whale star apologized Thursday for a scene from his 1997 film George of the Jungle where his character George climbed to the top of the Bay Bridge in San Francisco to perform a hero act saving a parachuter.
"When we were doing George of the Jungle, George goes to rescue a parachutist tangled in the Golden Gate Bridge. That means Disney put a mannequin hanging by a parachute from the uprights," Fraser, 53, told SF Gate at the 45th Mill Valley Film Festival about the scene. (He misidentified the bridge in question.)
"It brought traffic to a standstill on either side of the bridge," he continued.
Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP/Shutterstock Brendan Fraser
"My trailer was on the other side in a parking lot. I just remember watching the Golden Gate Bridge. There's this dummy parachutist hanging from it. I had the TV on, and Oprah got interrupted because there was a special news report with helicopters saying a parachute is dangling on the bridge. And I'm going — wait a minute, I'm looking at the helicopters and TV — somebody didn't pull a permit, somebody's going to get in trouble with the mayor's office. So I can only apologize for that."
As he accepted his lifetime achievement award for acting at the festival later that evening for his performance in The Whale, Fraser reiterated the story to the audience and issued another apology, per the outlet, saying, "So that said, my bad, it won't happen again."
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Fraser is getting major recognition for his comeback performance in The Whale after largely retreating from Hollywood in recent years following a string of high-profile roles in the '90s and early to mid-2000s.
He was recently honored with a 5-minute standing ovation at the London Film Festival where the actor went onstage as the credits rolled for the movie screening earlier this month and took a bow, causing the audience to cheer even louder.
RELATED: Brendan Fraser Gets Emotional During 5-Minute Standing Ovation for 'The Whale' in London
Fraser also appeared visibly moved after receiving a standing ovation at the Venice International Film Festival last month, telling Variety of the moment in a recent cover story that he "felt so affirming."
"I was emotional because it was acknowledgment that what we did is making an impact," he added at the time. "And that kind of response feels completely new in my professional life."
