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A number of Hollywood stars have turned their back on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globes in response to its perceived inability to tackle issues surrounding diversity, discrimination and fairness.
Amongst those big names to have criticised the HFPA are Scarlett Johansson who called for “fundamental reform” and Tom Cruise who returned his three Golden Globes in protest two years ago. Johansson’s Marvel co-star Mark Ruffalo has also led calls for change within the HFPA.
“Now is the time to step up and right the wrongs of the past,” he said in 2021. “Honestly, as a recent winner of a Golden Globe, I cannot feel proud or happy about being a recipient of this award.”
One of the notable absentees in 2023 will be Brendan Fraser despite being nominated for Best Actor following his stellar performance in The Whale. The Mummy star is up against Austin Butler (Elvis), Hugh Jackman (The Son), Bill Nighy (Living), and Jeremy Pope (The Inspection) for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama.
Why Brendan Fraser won’t be going to the Golden Globes for The Whale
In 2022 Fraser was brought to tears during the BFI London Film Festival after The Whale received a standing ovation that lasted around five minutes. The Darren Aronofsky-directed film, which was adapted for the screen from his own play by Samuel D. Hunter, marked something of a comeback for the 53-year-old actor.
You see, Fraser had spent time in the Hollywood wilderness due, in part, to depression caused by his mother’s death and a divorce, as well as an accusation of sexual assault against the HFPA’s ex-President Philip Berk.
The actor alleges that Berk assaulted him in 2003 at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Quoted in Variety, Fraser said Berk grabbed his behind and manoeuvred one of his fingers so that it touched the actor’s private parts. He claims Berk moved his finger around in a provocative sexual motion.
Berk has accepted that he did touch Fraser but argues it was done as a joke with no ill-intention. That’s not how Fraser saw it. “I felt ill. I felt like a little kid. I felt like there was a ball in my throat. I thought I was going to cry,” he recounts.
He promptly told his wife about the incident, but was afraid to go public as, “I didn’t want to contend with how that made me feel, or it becoming part of my narrative.”
An investigation conducted by the HFPA found that Berk had “inappropriately touched” Fraser but the actor won’t be attending the organisation’s big awards ceremony despite an apology from Berk.
In an interview with GQ, he said: “I will not participate. It’s because of the history that I have with them. And my mother didn’t raise a hypocrite.”
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