The Inspiring Comeback

In the cold early months of the year, it is common for people to feel down in the dumps, however, there has been an interesting comeback for one celebrity and the story is as uplifting as it can be for the more mellow months. Brendan Fraser is a comedy and drama actor who kicked off his career in the 1991 film Dogfight. Throughout the 90s the actor continued picking up roles and gaining recognition in the industry, starring in titles such as

George in the Jungle, The Mummy and Gods and Monsters. The young actor was quickly rising to stardom and expected to be one of the biggest names in Hollywood. However, as of today his name is where it should be given his quick rise in success and incredible acting.

In 2008, the then 40-yearold actor noted in an interview that doing his own stunts was painfully affecting his body, and he had to undergo multiple surgeries to heal it. Between that time and now, Fraser began distancing himself from the spotlight to focus on his recovery, an unfortunate decision he was forced to make. Just a few of his surgeries included vocal cord repair, a laminectomy on his spine which needed to be done twice, a partial knee replacement as well as seven years total of other surgeries. Sadly, this was not the only struggle for the actor at the time. His mother passed, he was going through a painful divorce with his wife and recently he has spoken about being sexually harassed on set when he was young. All of this would be a lot for anyone to deal with and the added pressure of the spotlight just made things worse. For that reason, Brendan removed himself from the spotlight.

Between 2008 and now, the actor only featured in smaller roles never really making a comeback to the spotlight. He struggled to get back to his former glory and felt low throughout that time, only opening up about this in a 2018 interview.

Brendan made his first larger appearance in 2022 starring in The Whale, his first leading role in ten years. The film had an amazing reception at film festivals and by critics, Fraser was even given a five-minute standing ovation which moved the humble actor to tears.

He also won the Best Actor award at the Toronto Film festival stating, ‘I think the last time I waited to hear my name called out loud was in grade 4 and it was from the peewee bowling league.’ The actor was since nominated for a Golden Globe and for his first ever Oscar for Best Actor.

In a world where we are used to seeing celebrities acting stuck up and entitled, it is refreshing to see such an inspiring story of coming back after dealing with a lot of misfortunes. Brendan Fraser’s fight to come back to acting and continue his career is both inspiring and uplifting. He is a great reminder that anyone can get up and keep going despite the setbacks that some people inevitably face.