The Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role has been awarded to Brendan Fraser for his performance in The Whale, as just announced at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The first-time award winner was presented with the famous gold statuette at the 95th Academy Awards by last year’s Best Actress winner Jessica Chastain.
Last year saw Will Smith take home the Oscar for his portrayal of tennis patriarch Richard Williams in King Richard - although his evening was remembered for other reasons. Smith had infamously assaulted Oscar host Chris Rock for making a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, during the show. His actions distracted from what should have been a wonderful evening. His fellow nominees were Javier Bardem, Benedict Cumberbatch, Andrew Garfield and Denzel Washington.
Fraser's powerful and moving performance as a 600lb school teacher in Darren Aronofsky's The Whale has seen his career resurgence given its biggest endorsement yet with his first nomination and victory, following his years in the acting wilderness after his own personal struggles and challenges. The former 90s action-adventure star has now seen his career given an unexpected boost, and one that film fans worldwide will be delighted by.
The Whale is an emotional drama which focuses on a reclusive English teacher, played by the beloved Fraser, weighing in at over 600lbs, who attempts to reconnect with his estranged daughter in what he sees as a final chance of redemption, cursed with the knowledge that his health is in terminal decline.
The Nominees
Fraser's powerful and moving performance as a 600lb school teacher in Darren Aronofsky's The Whale had given his career a massive resurgence, while Colin Farrell had also been nominated for his career-best turn in The Banshees of Inisherin. Austin Butler had earned his first nomination for the title role in Baz Luhrmann's bombastically-entertaining biopic Elvis, and there was also a long overdue first nod for the legendary British actor Bill Nighy. The 73-year-old had received widespread critical acclaim for his deeply moving performance as a terminally-ill gentleman in Living. Paul Mescal had also capped a stunning rise to rapid stardom with a pleasantly surprising nomination for his beautiful performance as a young father in Aftersun, the impressive debut film from director Charlotte Wells.
Everything Everywhere All at Once came into the evening as the favourite and front-runner. With 11 nominations, the movie shows up in more categories than any other nominee this year, while All Quiet on the Western Front - the German-language film from Netflix - and The Banshees of Inisherin followed with 9 nominations each.
The return of audiences to movie theatres following the pandemic was also acknowledged, with two films - Avatar: The Way of Water and Top Gun: Maverick - both being nominated for Best Picture, having earned over $1 billion each at the worldwide box office, marking the first time two films to pass that milestone had earned nominations.