Brendan Fraser is the square-jawed, fresh-faced star of 1999's The Mummy and its sequels, The Mummy Returns (2001) and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008). Fraser first gained notice for goofy roles in Encino Man (1992, with Sandra Hess) and George of the Jungle (1997). He then found critical success in Gods and Monsters (1998, starring Ian McKellen) and box office success in The Mummy (co-starring Rachel Weisz). Along the way he appeared in comedies and dramas, from Blast From the Past (1999) to The Quiet American (2002, starring Michael Caine). Eager and able on the big screen, his other films include Crash (2004, starring Don Cheadle), The Air I Breathe (2007, with Sarah Michelle Gellar) and the 2008 screen version of Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth.
As his character from Encino Man, Linkovitch Chomofsky, Fraser has also appeared in the films Son in Law (1993) and In the Army Now (1994).
Career Highlights: Gods and Monsters, The Mummy, School Ties
First Major Screen Credit: Guilty Until Proven Innocent (1991)
Biography
A muscular, darkly handsome actor who defies easy categorization, Brendan Fraser has an enviable versatility that has allowed him to be equally convincing in comedies, dramas, and adventure films alike. The son of a Canadian tourism executive, Fraser was born in Indianapolis on December 3, 1968. Thanks to his father's job, Fraser and his family led a fairly peripatetic existence, living in locales as varied as Ottawa, London, Rome, and Seattle. During his time in London, Fraser became interested in theater and eventually enrolled in Seattle's Cornish Institute for training.
After an early appearance in Dogfight (1991), Fraser got his break in 1992's Encino Man as a Stone-Age man unfrozen in modern-day California. He went on to gain audience prominence in diverse roles such as a Jewish football player in an all-WASP environment in School Ties (1992), a grunged-out musician in Airheads (1994), a Harvard student who loses his thesis in With Honors (1994), and a quirky baseball phenom in The Scout (1994). Fraser has been quoted in one magazine article as saying that he seeks out roles combining "silliness and sexiness"; his work during the second half of the '90s certainly reflected this. Particular highlights were George of the Jungle (1997), a witty satire of jungle adventure films; Gods and Monsters (1998), the acclaimed rendering of the last days of director James Whale, for which Fraser earned particular praise in his role as Whale's strapping gardener; the romantic comedy Blast From the Past (1999); and a big-budget remake of The Mummy (1999) that effectively showcased Fraser as a hero well-suited to old-school adventure. So successful were the extravagantly computer generated exploits of the revived Mummy franchise that a sequel soon went into production, resulting in the decidedly Indiana Jones-flavored The Mummy Returns (2001). Pitting Fraser against not only the fearsome Imhotep but the dreaded Scorpion King (wrestling superstar The Rock) as well, The Mummy Returns upped the ante in terms of action and special effects, providing audiences with even more summertime chills and thrills than its predecessor. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for 2001's ill-received Monkeybone which, despite an energetic performance from Fraser, did not fare in the theaters as well as 20th Century Fox had hoped.
Luckily for him, Fraser's career remained intact despite Monkeybone and the equally mediocre Bedazzled (2000) with Elizabeth Hurley. In 2002, Fraser starred in the critically acclaimed The Quiet American, which featured the young actor as Alden Pyle, a naïve American who travels to Saigon as part of a medical mission. Fraser would rekindle his penchant for the silly in 2003, during which he made an appearance as himself in the David Spade vehicle Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, and again in Looney Tunes: Back in Action with Steve Martin and Jenna Elfman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Fraser was born in Indianapolis, Indiana,[1] the son of Canadian parents Carol, a sales counselor, and Peter Fraser, a former journalist who worked as a Canadian foreign service officer for the Government Office of Tourism.[2][4][5] Fraser has three older brothers: Kevin, Regan, and Sean. His family moved often during his childhood, living in Eureka, California, Seattle, Ottawa, the Netherlands and Switzerland. Fraser attended the private boys' boarding school,[6]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.[4][7] 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 and work in movies.
His surname is properly pronounced "Fray-zer," though some pronounce it "Frasier". The correct pronunciation of his surname is a running gag in Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star in which he has a cameo.
Fraser also played a dramatic role in Gods and Monsters (1998),[8] alongside Ian McKellen. The film was based on the life of the filmmaker James Whale (McKellen), who made the 1931 film Frankenstein. This film was written and directed by Bill Condon (Dreamgirls) and was a story about the loss of creativity, ambiguous sexuality and unlikely bonds between a heterosexual gardener and a gay, tortured and ailing filmmaker.
His biggest commercial success came with the action adventure horror film (co-starring Rachel Weisz) The Mummy (1999) and its sequelThe Mummy Returns (2001), both of which were hugely successful at the box office. He has starred in two films based on Jay Ward creations, George of the Jungle and Dudley Do-Right although he did not reprise his role in the former's sequel.
In March 2006, he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame,[2] the first American-born actor to receive the honor. However, as of 2008, 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 the movie also starred Jet Li as Emperor Han. The last Mummy film grossed over $102 million in the USA and over $400 million worldwide.
Fraser met actress Afton Smith while attending a barbecue at Winona Ryder's house on July 4, 1993, after his arrival in Los Angeles.[4] Fraser married Smith on September 27, 1998, and they have three sons: Griffin Arthur Fraser,[1] born September 17, 2002, Holden Fletcher Fraser born August 16, 2004 and Leland Francis Fraser born May 2, 2006. On December 27, 2007, Fraser's publicist announced the couple had decided to divorce.[10][dead link][11]
Fraser is also an accomplished amateur photographer.[2] He 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 (possibly a Model 450); 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.
