‘Love Brendan Fraser, hate The Whale’: Fans react to Oscar winner’s ‘comeback of the century’

Fraser’s win comes after many years out of the spotlight, and for a film that’s proved extremely divisive among viewers

Brendan Fraser is the man of the moment.

At the Oscars ceremony on Sunday night (12 March), the actor, 54, completed his career comeback with a Best Actor win for his role as a man with life-threatening obesity in Darren Aronofsky’s divisive drama The Whale.

Fraser’s portrayal had previously earned him standing ovations at film festivals in Venice and Toronto, and saw him receive the best reviews of his career. Read The Independent’s take here.

His recent success comes after some years out of the spotlight. Fraser first broke out in the early 1990s with the comedy Encino Man and the drama School Ties, before going on to become a household name for George of the Jungle and The Mummy trilogy.

He also did dramatic turns in Gods and Monsters, The Quiet American and 2006 Best Picture winner Crash.

Yet, for much of the past decade, he has been off the big screen, dealing with a series of personal issues including divorce, his mother’s death, health problems and an alleged assault by the then-president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

He boycotted this year’s Golden Globes as a result of that alleged incident.

Celebrating Fraser’s “comeback”, one fan posted on Twitter: “This man almost disappeared from the face of earth post his Egyptian heroics in the early 2000s. This has to be the greatest comeback in the history of cinema.”

Another added: “Brendan Fraser wins Best Actor for his performance in The Whale – what a fantastic comeback story and resurgence in his career. Grew up watching him in so many movies. Glad to see all the success he’s having.”

A third posted: “So that was it! The 95th Oscars is officially in the books! Like usual, the awards show itself was alright but it was still awesome to see Brendan Fraser actually do it by having the comeback of the century to win best actor for his performance in The Whale!”

Fraser accepts his Best Actor Oscar (Invision)

Much of the praise for Fraser also included caveats about the controversies surrounding The Whale, which has been accused of being fatphobic and exploitative.

“Look, I really like Brendan Fraser and love his comeback. But that film is truly one of the most hideous things I’ve ever seen,” posted one person.

A second wrote: “Brendan Fraser is awesome, I’m glad he made a triumphant comeback, it just sucks that he won for such a crappy irredeemable harmful movie.”

“I love Brendan Fraser, but I f***ing hate the goddamn Whale,” a third stated.

Read all the talking points from the night here and the full winners list here.