Born: December 3, 1968
Age: 55
Birthplace: Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
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Brendan James Fraser (/ˈfreɪzər/ FRAY-zər; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor. He played Rick O'Connell in The Mummy trilogy, and is known for his comedy and fantasy film leading roles in films, such as Encino Man (1992), The Scout (1994), George of the Jungle (1997), Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003), Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008) and Inkheart (2009). He also starred in numerous dramatic roles, such as Gods and Monsters (1998), The Quiet American (2002), Crash (2004) and Gimme Shelter (2013).
Fraser was born December 3, 1968, in Indianapolis, Indiana, the son of Canadian parents. His mother, Carol Mary (née Genereux), was a sales counselor, and his father, Peter, 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. Fraser has three older brothers: Kevin, Regan, and Sean. His surname is properly pronounced /ˈfreɪzər/, not /ˈfreɪʒər/. The correct pronunciation of his surname is a running gag in Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, in which his character's surname is pronounced /frɛrəˈʒʊər/. His ancestry includes Irish, Scottish, German, Czech, and French Canadian. His family moved often during his childhood, living in Eureka, California, Seattle, Ottawa, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. Fraser attended the private boys' boarding school, Upper Canada College, in Toronto. While on vacation in London, Fraser attended his first professional theatrical performance at the West End. He graduated from Seattle's Cornish College of the Arts in 1990. He began acting at a small acting college in New York. He originally planned on attending graduate school in Texas but stopped in Hollywood on his way south and decided to stay in Los Angeles to work in film productions.
Fraser made a brief appearance in the reenactment of America's Most Wanted, as a friend of murder victim Rodney Mark Peterson. After his film debut Encino Man, he starred with Matt Damon and Chris O'Donnell in School Ties. In 1994, he starred with Steve Buscemi and Adam Sandler in Airheads, played Steve Nebraska in The Scout and Montgomery "Monty" Kessler in With Honors. He went on to play supporting roles, such as Philip Ridley's The Passion of Darkly Noon (1995) and The Twilight of the Golds (1997). He went on to appear in several comedy films, such as Blast from the Past (1999), Bedazzled (2000) and Monkeybone (2001). He also starred in two films based on Jay Ward creations, George of the Jungle and Dudley Do-Right, but did not reprise his role in the former's sequel.
He also starred in Gods and Monsters (1998), which was based on the life of James Whale (Ian McKellen) who directed Frankenstein. The film was written and directed by Bill Condon, and follows the loss of creativity, ambiguous sexuality and unlikely bonds between a heterosexual gardener and a homosexual, tortured and ailing filmmaker. His biggest commercial success came with the adventure fantasy film, The Mummy (1999) and its sequel The Mummy Returns (2001), both of which were hugely successful at the box office. He lent his voice for the unreleased animated film Big Bug Man. In 2004, he appeared in the Academy Award-winning film Crash. He has also made guest appearances on the television shows, Scrubs, King of the Hill and The Simpsons. In March 2006, he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame, the first American-born actor to receive the honor. However as of 2014, he does not have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. After a six-year hiatus in the franchise, Fraser returned for the second sequel to The Mummy released in August 2008 and titled The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Filming started in Montreal on July 27, 2007 and also starred Jet Li as Emperor Han. His other releases in 2008 were the 3D film adaptation of Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth and the fantasy film Inkheart (chosen personally for the lead role by the novel's author Cornelia Funke). In 2010, he starred in Extraordinary Measures with Harrison Ford.
Fraser starred as "Brick" in the West End production of Tennessee Williams's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in September 2001, directed by Anthony Page. Castmates included Ned Beatty, Frances O'Connor and Gemma Jones. The show closed on January 12, 2002, with Fraser garnering many excellent reviews. Fraser recently starred in a Broadway production of Elling, but the play closed after 9 performances due to lackluster reviews. After appearing in the critically panned Furry Vengeance in 2010, Fraser moved from being represented by William Morris Endeavor to the Creative Artists Agency. He starred in Whole Lotta Sole directed by Terry George and in 2011 was set to play William Tell in The Legend of William Tell: 3D, directed by Eric Brevig. Fraser had also worked with Brevig on Journey to the Center of the Earth. However, filming was delayed and late in 2011, Fraser sued the producer Todd Moyer for promised wages. Moyer later countersued. The film is now in development limbo.
Fraser met actress Afton Smith while attending a barbecue at Winona Ryder's house on July 4, 1993, after arriving in Los Angeles. Fraser married Smith on September 27, 1998, and they have three sons: Griffin Arthur Fraser, born in 2002, Holden Fletcher Fraser, born in 2004, and Leland Francis Fraser, born in 2006. On December 27, 2007, Fraser's publicist announced the couple had decided to divorce. In early 2013, Fraser petitioned the courts for a reduction of his alimony and child support payments, asserting that he was unable to meet the annual obligation of $900,000; his ex-wife, in turn, accused Fraser of hiding financial assets.
Fraser speaks fluent French, and serves on the board of directors for FilmAid International. He is an accomplished amateur photographer, and has used several Polaroids in movies and on TV shows, most notably on his guest roles on Scrubs. In his first appearance he used a folding pack camera; and on his second appearance he used a Holga with a Polaroid back, a Japanese-only model. The book Collector's Guide to Instant Cameras has a dedication to Fraser.
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | Dogfight | Sailor No. 1 | |
1992 | Encino Man | Link | |
1992 | School Ties | David Greene | |
1993 | Twenty Bucks | Sam Mastrewski | |
1993 | Younger and Younger | Winston Younger | |
1993 | Son in Law | Link | Cameo |
1994 | With Honors | Montgomery 'Monty' Kessler | |
1994 | Airheads | Chester 'Chazz' Darby | |
1994 | In the Army Now | Link | Cameo |
1994 | The Scout | Steve Nebraska | |
1995 | The Passion of Darkly Noon | Darkly Noon | |
1995 | Now and Then | Vietnam Veteran | Uncredited |
1996 | Brain Candy | Placebo Patient | Uncredited |
1996 | Mrs. Winterbourne | Bill / Hugh Winterbourne | |
1996 | Glory Daze | Doug | Cameo |
1996 | The Twilight of the Golds | David Gold | |
1997 | George of the Jungle | George | |
1998 | Still Breathing | Fletcher McBracken | |
1998 | Gods and Monsters | Clayton Boone | |
1999 | Blast from the Past | Adam Webber | |
1999 | The Mummy | Richard 'Rick' O'Connell | |
1999 | Dudley Do-Right | Dudley Do-Right | |
2000 | Bedazzled | Elliot Richards / Jefe / Mary / Abraham Lincoln | |
2000 | Sinbad: Beyond the Veil of Mists | Sinbad (voice) | |
2001 | Monkeybone | Stu Miley | |
2001 | The Mummy Returns | Richard 'Rick' O'Connell | |
2002 | The Quiet American | Alden Pyle | |
2003 | Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star | Himself | Uncredited |
2003 | Looney Tunes: Back in Action | DJ Drake / Himself / Voice of Tasmanian Devil and She-Devil | |
2004 | Crash | Rick Cabot | |
2006 | Journey to the End of the Night | Paul | |
2006 | The Last Time | Jamie Bashant | Executive producer |
2007 | The Air I Breathe | Pleasure | |
2008 | Journey to the Center of the Earth | Professor Trevor Anderson | Executive producer |
2008 | The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor | Richard 'Rick' O'Connell | |
2009 | Inkheart | Mortimer Folchart | |
2009 | G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra | Sgt. Stone | Cameo |
2010 | Extraordinary Measures | John Crowley | |
2010 | Furry Vengeance | Dan Sanders | Executive producer |
2012 | Stand Off | Joe Maguire | Executive producer |
2013 | Escape from Planet Earth | Scorch Supernova (voice) | |
2013 | A Case of You | Tony | |
2013 | HairBrained | Leo Searly | |
2013 | Pawn Shop Chronicles | Ricky Baldoski | |
2013 | Breakout | Jack Damson | Producer Direct-to-DVD |
2013 | Gimme Shelter | Tom Fitzpatrick | |
2014 | The Nut Job | Grayson (voice) |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | My Old School | Chevy | Short film |
1991 | Child of Darkness, Child of Light | John's friend | Television film |
1991 | Guilty Until Proven Innocent | Bobby McLaughlin | Television film |
1995 | Fallen Angels | Johnny Lamb | Episode: "The Professional Man" |
1997 | Duckman | Sammons Cagle (voice) | Episode: "Dammit, Hollywood" |
1998 | The Simpsons | Brad (voice) | Episode: "King of the Hill" |
2000/05 | King of the Hill | David Kalaiki-Ali / Irv Bennet / Jimmy Beardon (voices) | 2 episodes |
2002/04 | Scrubs | Ben Sullivan | 3 episodes |
2009 | Wishology | Turbo Thunder (voice) | Television film |
2015 | Texas Rising | Billy Anderson | Miniseries |
Year | Association | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1993 | Chicago Film Critics Association Award | Most Promising Actor | Encino Man and School Ties | Nominated |
1997 | Seattle International Film Festival Award | Best Actor | Still Breathing | Won |
2000 | Saturn Award | Best Actor | The Mummy | Nominated |
Blockbuster Entertainment Award | Favorite Actor - Action | Nominated | ||
2001 | Teen Choice Award | Film - Choice Actor | The Mummy Returns | Nominated |
2005 | Gotham Awards | Best Ensemble Cast | Crash | Nominated |
Hollywood Film Festival Award | Ensemble of the Year | Won | ||
2006 | Broadcast Film Critics Association | Best Cast | Won | |
Screen Actors Guild Award | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | Won |
[ Source: Wikipedia ]