After losing the Golden Globe, Brendan Fraser won the Critics’ Choice Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Whale and fans are getting super emotional over his speech. Darren Aronofsky’s adaptation of Samuel D. Hunter’s psychological drama play has seen some divisive responses for its handling of its subject matter of morbid obesity, primarily in the film’s usage of prosthetics and a “fat suit” to depict a 600-pound man. The one consistent source of praise, however, has been Fraser’s performance in the film, with many hailing The Whale as his comeback film after slowly returning to acting with Doom Patrol and Trust.
In the wake of the film’s festival premieres, Fraser’s performance in The Whale in turn earned him a lot of Oscar buzz, as well as leading the charts in a variety of other awards season chatter. This month saw both the Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Awards come and go, with Fraser not bringing home the statue at the former, but winning the Best Actor award at the latter, where he delivered a passionate speech. Fans have since flooded to social media with emotional responses to Fraser’s Best Actor speech, praising the actor’s wholesome personality and humble reaction to his win. Check out some of the fan reactions below:
Will Brendan Fraser Win the Best Actor Oscar for The Whale?
Much like Adam Sandler a few years prior for his against-type turn in Uncut Gems, Fraser’s The Whale performance has netted him lots of acclaim, though unlike the star of the Safdie brothers’ film, the resurging actor did net a Golden Globe nomination rather than getting snubbed. However, despite his being considered the frontrunner for the Best Actor award, Fraser did ultimately lose the Globe to Austin Butler for his performance in Elvis, which has led some to believe that Fraser’s chances to win the Academy Award for Best Actor could be in jeopardy. While the Globes are generally seen as the precursor for the Oscars, though, the door isn’t entirely closed for Fraser to win.
Just two years ago, Chadwick Boseman garnered the Globe posthumously for his turn in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, only to lose the Oscar to Anthony Hopkins for his turn in The Father, a decision that proved controversial for many Boseman fans. The year prior saw a similar division among audiences when Taron Egerton brought home the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his performance in Rocketman, only to be snubbed of any kind of Oscar nomination. With Oscar voting proving to be just as unpredictable as an actual victory, Fraser losing to Butler for Elvis doesn’t inherently mean he’s set up for failure with the Academy.
For some, Fraser bringing home the Critics’ Choice Award for his performance in The Whale may be an even better sign for his potential to bring home the Oscar. Not only did he beat out Butler, but he’s now established that he’s no longer the underdog come awards season and that, in spite of the film’s polarized response, critics are fully in love with Fraser’s tear-jerking performance, setting him up for victory. While audiences await word on his chances at the Oscar, they can catch up with The Whale now in theaters.
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