Brendan Fraser told action hero Dwayne Johnson he owes him a “debt of gratitude” for his support with the Oscar-winning movie The Whale. The former co-stars of The Mummy Returns were speaking as part of the Actors on Actors series from CNN and Vanity Fair, released on Monday. Fraser, 57, won the Best Actor for his comeback performance as a morbidly obese man reconnecting with his daughter and told Johnson he considered him the “godfather” of the 2022 movie. “I also owe you a debt of gratitude because when I took The Whale… to Venice [film festival], they applauded for a very long time and stayed on their feet,” Fraser said. “You put your shoulder into that by showing your support through Twitter… Dwayne, you’re a godfather of sorts of the success of that project. I hope you know that.” Johnson said he’d been in tears watching the ovation in Venice, which sealed Fraser’s return to Hollywood stardom after a decade away from leading roles. “That moment rocked me and it moved me,” he said. “I see this long applause for you—you’re emotional, I’m emotional watching you get emotional! But also just in that moment, man, like, such joy for you… There it is, after all these years, that’s what you worked for.”
