Yahoo News The Whale scores best limited opening of the year
The Brendan Fraser renaissance has culminated in a record-breaking debut at the box office.
The Whale debuted in Los Angeles and New York this weekend and had the best limited opening of 2022. The drama sold out shows at all six theaters and grossed $360,000 for a per screen average of $60,000, marking director Darren Aronofsky's best opening since 2010's Black Swan, according to A24 and Comscore.
The film has been heralded as a career-best for Fraser, but has not been without its controversy due to Fraser's turn as a 600-pound man, which was done using prosthetic and digital enhancements. The actor portrays Charlie, a recluse English teacher affected by obesity, as he attempts to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Sadie Sink) while in the care of his longtime nurse (Hong Chau) following a decline in health.
Fraser, who worked with the Obesity Action Coalition to research the physical and mental elements of Charlie, told EW the role gave him an appreciation for the "incredible courage [those with larger bodies] have to possess themself with for their very survival." He said, "It takes an incredibly strong-willed and physically strong person to live inside a body that is, in Charlie's case, hundreds and hundreds of pounds."
A24 Brendan Fraser as Charlie in 'The Whale'
"It's important to have respect for those who do have that corporal being," he said. "I learned almost in a way, poetically, that you need to have incredibly strong will of spirit and body to inhabit a body the size of Charlie's, and that's an appreciation that I grew to respect more and more each day."
It's been a solid year for A24, as the multiverse epic Everything Everywhere All at Once became the arthouse studio's first film to surpass $100 million in ticket sales over the summer.
Elsewhere, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever once again reigned at No. 1 for the fifth week in a row at the domestic and global box office. The Black Panther sequel now has a North American total of $409 million and $767 million overall worldwide. Violent Night followed in second place, earning an additional $8.7 million this weekend and $26 million overall. It's followed by Strange World, which earned an extra $3.6 million and $30 million overall. The Menu ($2.7 million) and Devotion ($2 million) rounded out the top five, bringing the totals to $29 million and $16 million, respectively.
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