Brendan Fraser transforms into recluse affected by obesity in The Whale first look
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The Brendan Fraser renaissance (dubbed the Brenaissance) has arrived.
On Tuesday, A24 released a first-look image of the actor in Darren Aronofsky's upcoming drama The Whale. The film is centered on Charlie (Fraser), a reclusive English teacher suffering from a compulsive eating disorder who attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter, Elle (Stranger Things breakout Sadie Sink).
The film is an adaptation of MacArthur-winning playwright Samuel D. Hunter's acclaimed 2012 play of the same name and will also star Hong Chau, Samantha Morton, and Ty Simpkins. Aronofsky's first directorial effort since 2017's Mother! starring Jennifer Lawrence, The Whale is set to premiere at the 2022 Venice Film Festival.
A24 Brendan Fraser in 'The Whale'
"Adapting my play into a screenplay has been a real labor of love for me," Hunter previously told Deadline. "This story is deeply personal, and I'm very thankful it will have the chance to reach a wider audience. I've been a fan of Darren's ever since I saw Requiem for a Dream when I was a college freshman writing my first plays, and I'm so grateful that he's bringing his singular talent and vision to this film."
"It's gonna be like something you haven't seen before," Fraser told Unilad last year of the film. "That's really all I can tell you. The wardrobe and costume was extensive, seamless, cumbersome. This is certainly far removed from anything I've ever done but not to be coy… I do know it's going to make a lasting impression."
Fraser was last seen on Doom Patrol as Cliff Steele (and Cliff's alter-ego Robotman). He also had a supporting role last year in Steven Soderbergh's No Sudden Move, but The Whale will mark the actor's first time back as a leading man since 2013's straight-to-DVD Breakout. And the Brenaissance is just beginning: he also has upcoming roles in Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon and DC's Batgirl as bad guy Garfield Lynns/Firefly.
The Whale does not have a theatrical date yet.
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