The first trailer for A24’sThe Whaleoffers our first real look at Brendan Fraser’s award-winning central performance. Released courtesy ofA24, the footage reveals Fraser as we have never seen him before, transforming the actor into Charlie, a 600lb man struggling to keep his life together. You can check out the trailer forThe Whalebelow.
Fraser has already received praise, applause,and plenty of standing ovationsfor his performance inThe Whale, with the actor now considered to be an Oscar favorite. Fraser, who is in the midst of a career resurgence, has already received several awards forThe Whale, including the American Riviera Award at the 38th Annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival and the TIFF Tribute Award for Performance at the Toronto International Film Festival. While this newly released footage may only be a small glimpse at what’s to come, his commitment to the role, and the power of his performance is already evident.
The Whaleis a major step forward for the Brenaissance,with Brendan Fraser himself declaring that the drama will reintroduce him to audiences. “He said he wanted an actor to reintroduce,” Fraser said of director Darren Aronofsky’s intention with The Whale. “And I wanted to be reintroduced. I wanted to know what I was capable of.”
WhileThe Whalehas been met with some criticism regarding the casting of Fraser as an obese man,the actor has since responded to such claims. “I’m not a small man. And I don’t know what the metric is to qualify to play the role. I only know that I had to give as honest a performance as I can,” he said, adding that using make-up would always have been required and urging people to see The Whale for themselves before passing judgement. “There’s no way you can cast someone to play this job, so we had to use makeup to get there. Most of the people that are playing critique have not seen the film. So I welcome everyone to see the film because the film is about bringing empathy to characters that you don’t expect to feel for,” Fraser continued.
Related:Brendan Fraser to Be Awarded the American Riviera Award for His Performance in The Whale
The Whale Will Hit Theaters in December
Based on the 2012 play by Samuel D. Hunter,The Whalewill findBrendan Fraserleading the latest outing from Darren Aronofsky as Charlie, a 600-pound middle-aged man who tries to reconnect with his 17-year-old daughter. The two have grown apart after Charlie abandoned his family for his gay lover, who later died, which led to Charlie binge-eating out of pain and guilt.
Directed by Darren Aronofsky and written by Samuel D. Hunter,The Whalestars Hong Chau, Samantha Morton, and Ty Simpkins alongside Brendan Fraser with Sadie Sink, who is best known for starring in Netflix’sStranger Thingsand theFear Streettrilogy, starring as Ellie, Charlie’s daughter.
The Whalepremiered at the 79th Venice International Film Festival on August 09, 2025, and is scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States on June 20, 2025, by A24.
