Yahoo News Bradley Cooper Defended by Leonard Bernstein Family Over ‘Maestro’ Prosthetic Nose
One day after the debut of the trailer for Maestro, the upcoming movie about Leonard Bernstein directed by and starring Bradley Cooper, the children of the classical music great are defending the film against online charges of antisemitism.
The criticism pertains to Cooper’s choice of wearing a prosthetic nose to play Bernstein — and has furthered an ongoing debate about who should be able to play Jewish roles, with some commentators going so far as to label Cooper’s performance as “Jewface.” (Cooper is not Jewish.)
More from The Hollywood Reporter
Prince Harry Praises War Veterans in Trailer for 'Heart of Invictus' Docuseries on Netflix
'Barbie' Becomes Biggest Warner Bros. Movie Ever at Domestic Box Office, Beating 'The Dark Knight'
Bradley Cooper's 'Maestro' Will Premiere Stateside at the New York Film Festival
A joint statement from Jamie, Alexander and Nina Bernstein, the conductor’s children, reads, “It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of [Cooper’s] efforts.
“It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose. Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we’re perfectly fine with that. We’re also certain that our dad would have been fine with it as well,” the Bernsteins write.
They add that the critiques are “disingenuous attempts to bring a successful person down a notch — a practice we observed all too often perpetrated on our own father.”
Twitter users were quick to pounce on the aesthetic choice, posting side-by-side photos of Cooper’s Bernstein and his real-life counterpart, with some noting the prosthetic nose was larger and pointier than Bernstein’s own.
Jake Gyllenhaal, whose mother is Jewish, lost a rights battle to play the West Side Story composer to Cooper and his producing team, which includes Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg.
Speaking to Deadline in 2021, Gyllenhaal said, “[The] idea of playing one of the most preeminent Jewish artists in America and his struggle with his identity was in my heart for 20-some-odd years, but sometimes those things don’t work out.”
The Hollywood Reporter has reached out to Cooper’s reps for comment. Netflix, which is releasing Maestro, referred THR to the statement on the Leonard Bernstein Twitter account.
Best of The Hollywood Reporter
