The Reason Brendan Fraser Is Missing From The 2023 Golden Globes
And the nominees for best actor in a motion picture drama are...
Brendan Fraser finds himself up against the other best actors of 2022 at this year's Golden Globe Awards. The actor is the frontrunner to win at the Oscars for his performance as Charlie in Darren Aronofsky's "The Whale." At the Golden Globes, he's up against Austin Butler ("Elvis"), Hugh Jackman ("The Son"), Bill Nighy ("Living"), and Jeremy Pope ("The Inspection").
But a quick scan of the room proved Fraser was not in attendance. Why? In the midst of his massive comeback, you'd assume he'd be front and center. However, you can bet on never seeing Fraser at the Golden Globes for the rest of his life.
Brendan Fraser is no hypocrite
In November 2022, Brendan Fraser was highlighted by GQ, where he revealed if he were to be nominated at the 2023 Golden Globes, he would not be attending. One month later, he was announced alongside his fellow nominees and kept his promise about not showing up. "I have more history with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association than I have respect for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association," Fraser told GQ. "No, I will not participate."
Fraser added, "It's because of the history that I have with them. And my mother didn't raise a hypocrite. You can call me a lot of things, but not that." The actor alleged that former HFPA president Philip Berk groped him at a luncheon in 2003. He told the story to GQ in 2018, saying the incident caused him to withdraw and become a recluse. Fraser also told the outlet the HFPA informed him that their investigation found that Berk did inappropriately touch Fraser, but it was meant as a joke. After that 2018 article, the Golden Globes pressed on as if the GQ article was never published — yet another slap in the face to Fraser from the HFPA.
You'll be seeing Fraser at the Oscars
In 2021, Philip Berk was expelled from the HFPA when a racist email he sent came to light (via The Hollywood Reporter). This only highlighted the fact that the HFPA had ZERO Black voting members in a group of 87. In 2022, the Globes took a break (kind of) and didn't televise its ceremony due to the controversy with Berk and the voting group.
The HFPA announced reforms in 2021, citing the addition of a Chief Diversity Officer and mandatory sexual harassment and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) training for its members. GQ asked Fraser last November if he believed in any of the HFPA's reforms. "At the moment, no. Maybe time will tell if they're going to...I don't know what they're going to do. I don't know," he said.
Fraser will certainly be at the 2023 Academy Awards and campaigning. "I owe it to myself. I owe it to the filmmakers. I know I owe it to those fans who paid to come and see me and stand in line in the sun and, you know, all of that. I owe it to my kids. This is my shot," the actor admitted. Oscar nominations won't be announced until January 24, but if Fraser wasn't nominated, that would be the snub of the century. We'll see you there, O'Connell.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).