Brendan Fraser will not be attending the 2023 Golden Globe Awards. Image Source: NY Post
Brendan Fraser will not be attending the 2023 Golden Globe Awards.
Brendan Fraser, who recently appeared in a movie called The Whale and was highly praised for his work, shared with GQ during a profile interview that he won’t be attending the 2023 Golden Globe Awards. The reason the actor stated was due to an alleged 2003 sexual assault incident that he first spoke about in 2018.
The 53-year-old actor said that he has a history with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and that he has respect for it, adding that he won’t be participating in the 2023 Golden Globe Awards because of his history with them and noting that his mother did not raise a hypocrite. Brendan stated that he could be called many things, but not a hypocrite.
In 2018, the actor claimed that former Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Philip Berk groped and assaulted him at a luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel in 2003. Philip Berk, in response to the accusations, stated that Brendan Fraser’s allegations are nothing but just fabricated lies, but the Hollywood Foreign Press Association launched an investigation after the actor made the allegation and told the outlet that they stand firmly against sexual harassment and the type of behavior described.
Brendan Fraser later claimed that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association proposed issuing a joint statement after their "investigation" concluded, and the statement stated that, while Philip Berk inappropriately touched Brendan Fraser, the evidence proves that it was intended to be taken as a joke rather than a sexual advance. The actor refused to approve the press release and asked the Hollywood Foreign Press Association what was so funny about it.
The actor also claimed that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association refused to share the full results of their investigation with him or even try to explain on what basis they concluded that the behavior was supposed to be taken as a joke and not as a sexual advance. Philip Berk also confirmed to the outlet that he was still an active member of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and that, in terms of discipline from the organization, he received nothing at all.
Brendan Fraser stated in an interview with GQ in 2018 that it was about stripping away one's individuality and of power struggle being used to stir it down and also being sort of patronizingly equally guilty in it by keeping quiet and attempting to enter into an arrangement not to talk. He went on to say that he wanted the Hollywood Foreign Press Association to be given every chance to alter and do the right thing, even though they had never made an apology to him.
Philip Berk, on the other hand, had mentioned that he did write a letter to the actor describing the alleged incident but did not admit to any wrongdoing but did mention that if he had done anything to upset him, it was not intended, and he apologized. Brendan Fraser recently stated in a GQ profile that he knew the Hollywood Foreign Press Association would close ranks, kick the can down the road, and get ahead of the story and that he would have no future with the system as it was.
He stated that the 2018 Golden Globes went on as usual because he believes it was too prickly, sharp-edged, or icky for people to want to go first and emotionally invest in the situation. Brendan mentioned that, while things at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association did not change as a result of his speech, his life did, as he described what he did hear from his university friends, individuals he had not worked with and seen in 30 years of his career, almost as if people actually knew what he started to look like and knew his story, but did add that it was most empowering for him to speak up.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association was thrust back into the spotlight after it was revealed that it has no black members and several ethical and financial conflicts. Philip Berk was publicly expelled from his position for sharing an article that described Black Lives Matter as a racist hate movement. After NBC declined to air the 2022 Golden Globes ceremony but agreed to air it in 2023, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association reported that it would make some changes.
When asked if he thinks about their policy changes or modifications, Brendan Fraser stated that he does not at the moment, but that time will tell if they will alter, before adding that he does not know what they'll do. Brendan, however, added that under the rules of the engagement, it would be his obligation to assess the situation and decide whether or not it would become the situation. And it would have to be—not he's sure what word he's looking for—sincere? The actor also stated that he would appreciate some gesture of making medicine out of poison, which he does not know what that is, but that is his hope. He elaborated that it is not about him, but he would expect that the changes would be something that would be meaningful for them too.
Brendan Fraser stated that he gets triggered now and then and feels a heart palpitation when discussing the alleged incident, but added that being in the industry for such a long period, he just hopes that now people will know him for his work on-screen and off-screen and how much efforts he puts into his making it happen rather than the trope of the comeback kid as being a benchmark in society and sports, coming from behind, being written off, and then coming back. During the discussion, the actor endorsed his film The Whale, asserting that he owes it to himself, the movie makers, and the fans who paid to see him and stand in line in the sun and all that. Brendan said that he owes this to his children adding that this is his shot.
