In The Whale teaser, Brendan Fraser lauds humanity
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At just a minute long, the first teaser for The Whale is here, if barely. Darren Aronofsky’s new film—which has been garnering both criticism for its depiction of obesity and Oscar buzz for lead Brendan Fraser—hits theaters in December.
In The Whale, adapted from a 2014 play by Samuel D. Hunter, Fraser plays Charlie, a 600-pound reclusive English teacher who, confined to his home, teaches online classes. The film follows Charlie as he navigates strained relationships with the remaining people in his life: his teen daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink,) his nurse Liz (Hong Chau,) and a missionary, Thomas (Ty Simpkins.)
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The Whale | Official Trailer HD | A24
“People are incapable of not caring,” Charlie whispers as the trailer ends, wearing a breathing tube. “People are amazing.”
The teaser doesn’t introduce the people around Charlie in too much depth, but highlights glimpses of the world he witnesses outside his apartment. A bird flutters its wings through a window; a pink and purple sunset descends behind a hill.
Although the trailer highlights a review from The Telegraph calling The Whale “a sensational film of rare compassion,” the film has also been criticized for a lack thereof. For example, Mean Girls star Daniel Franzese called Fraser a “lovely man,” but questioned why an actual queer person of larger size couldn’t have played the role.
“Why? Why go up there and wear a fat suit to play a 400-lb. queer man?” Franzese, who is queer himself, inquired during an interview with People in September. “To finally have a chance to be in a prestige film that might be award-nominated, where stories about people who look like us are being told? That’s the dream.”
The Whale premieres in theaters on December 9.
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