Celebrity Nooz: Brendan Fraser

Brendan Fraser (Actor) - The Mummy

Updated: 12/01/21

Name: Brendan Fraser

Birth Name: Brendan James Fraser

Born: December 3, 1968 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Claim To Fame: Brendan Fraser is a Canadian-American actor best known for playing Rick O'Connell in The Mummy trilogy (1999-2008), George of the Jungle (1997), and Encino Man (1992).

Family Life: Fraser married actress Afton Smith in 1998; they later divorced in 2008. They have three sons: Griffin Arthur Fraser, Holden Fletcher Fraser, and Leland Francis Fraser.

Info: He's the son of Canadian parents Carol Mary and Peter Fraser. His mother was a sales counselor, and his father was a former journalist who worked as a Canadian foreign service officer for the Government Office of Tourism.

His maternal uncle, George Genereux, was the only Canadian to win a gold medal in the 1952 Summer Olympics.

He has three older brothers: Kevin, Regan, and Sean.

Has Irish, Scottish, German, Czech, and French-Canadian ancestry.

Holds dual American and Canadian citizenship.

Attended Upper Canada College, a private boarding school in Toronto.

Became interested in acting after attended his very first professional theatre show in the West End wile on vacation in London.

He graduated from Seattle's Cornish College of the Arts in 1990.

Fraser speaks fluent French.

Serves on the board of directors for FilmAid International.

He's an accomplished amateur photographer.

Some of the stunts Fraser has performed in many of his action roles have resulted in several surgeries, including a partial knee replacement, a laminectomy, and vocal cord surgery.

In March 2006, he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame, the first American-born actor to receive the honor.

Fraser alleged in 2018 that he was sexually assaulted by Philip Berk, the president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, at a luncheon in the summer of 2003; he believes this caused his career to decline.

Trivia: He got his first leading film role in the 1992 cult comedy film Encino Man where he played Link, a frozen pre-historic caveman who is thawed out in the present day.

Whenever he appeared in a subsequent Pauly Shore movie, it was always as the character of Link.

He had his first major box office success with the 1997 comedy film George of the Jungle which was based on the classic animated series.

His biggest commercial success came with the adventure fantasy film The Mummy (1999) and its sequel The Mummy Returns (2001).

He was the first choice for playing the lead role in Inspector Gadget (1999), but Fraser turned it down in favor to play the title character in George of the Jungle (1997).

Was set to play the role of Dr. Steve/Eddie in The Wedding Planner (2001), but scheduling conflicts with filming Bedazzled (2000) prevented him. The role went to Matthew McConaughey.

In 2001, Fraser starred as "Brick" in the West End production of Tennessee Williams's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Cast mates included Ned Beatty, Frances O'Connor and Gemma Jones. The show closed in January 2002, with Fraser garnering many excellent reviews.

While filming Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), Fraser was terrified at having to hit Bill Goldberg. Goldberg constantly told him to go ahead and do it, telling him, "It's what I do for a living."

Was considered for the role of Dr. Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic in Fantastic Four (2005).

Was considered for the role of Phil Dunphy on Modern Family (2009).

In 2011, he was set to play William Tell in The Legend of William Tell: 3D, directed by Eric Brevig, with whom Fraser had also worked in Journey to the Center of the Earth. Filming was delayed and late in 2011, Fraser sued the producer Todd Moyer for promised wages. Moyer later counter-sued for assault, which Fraser dismissed as a desperate attempt to avoid paying his debt.

Where Are They Now: Fraser is quite "in-demand" these days! He's currently playing Robotman on the HBO series Doom Patrol. Plus, he's got three projects in post-production: sci-fi film Behind the Curtain of Night, Darren Aronofsky's next feature The Whale, and Martin Scorsese's historical drama Killers of the Flower Moon.

Fraser is also filming two movies at the moment: Brothers, with Peter Dinklage, and as the villain Firefly in the upcoming Batgirl. I think we are in the midst of a "Brenaissance". So be sure to keep your eye out for him in some very intriguing projects in 2022.

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