Brendan Fraser Will Not Be At The Golden Globes Because His Mom “Didn’t Raise A Hypocrite”

Actor Brendan Fraser has made quite the career comeback with an overwhelming amount of fan support (including an adorable viral TikTok moment) and a critically acclaimed performance in the new Darren Aronofsky film — The Whale — it seems more than likely Fraser will be on the invite list quite often during award season.

However, he will not be in attendance at one particular award show — the Golden Globes. The actor said that if he is nominated for his role in The Whale, he will not attend.

“I have more history with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association than I have respect for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association,” Fraser told GQ. “No, I will not participate.”

He then credited his mom for wise words about practicing what you preach. “It's because of the history that I have with them. And my mother didn't raise a hypocrite. You can call me a lot of things, but not that,” he added.

Since the “Me Too” Movement shook Hollywood starting in 2017, there have been countless allegations of toxic work culture, abuse and sexual assault ranging from actors to musicians to crew members on set. While most of these stories have come from women in Hollywood, there have also been some men to come forward with their own harrowing stories.

in 2018, Fraser claimed that former Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) President Philip Berk sexually assaulted him in the summer of 2003, while at a luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The alleged incident has been denied by Berk, 89. After the incident, Fraser has said he believes he was blacklisted in Hollywood partly due to the aftermath.

According to the actor, the assault occurred when Berk reached out to shake Fraser's hand. “His left hand reaches around, grabs my ass cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint. And he starts moving it around," Fraser claimed to GQ in 2018.

After the allegations made waves, the HFPA investigated the claims, saying in a statement that they did not tolerate any sort of inappropriate behavior. However, after the HFPA’s investigation, they came back to Fraser with a joint statement they could release together.

According to Fraser, the statement would read, “Although it was concluded that Mr. Berk inappropriately touched Mr. Fraser, the evidence supports that it was intended to be taken as a joke and not as a sexual advance.”

Fraser refused to sign off on the statement. Berk remained with the organization despite the allegations against him.

“I knew they would close ranks,” Fraser told GQ. “I knew they would kick the can down the road. I knew they would get ahead of the story. I knew that I certainly had no future with that system as it was.”

While it was not Fraser’s accusations that shook up the HFPA, the organization did meet some bumpy roads recently. In 2021, the LA Times revealed that the HFPA had zero Black members. They also exposed several ethical and financial issues among the members.

The news came alongside the 2021 nominees which was getting reamed by the public for lack of diversity. Berk was eventually expelled from the organization after sending members an email with an article that called Black Lives Matter a “racist hate movement.”

In May 2021, NBC announced that they would no longer air the Golden Globes, and the following year, the ceremony was not broadcast on television. However, after agreeing to a one-hear deal with the HFPA, NBC will air the awards in early January 2023.

The network claims the decision was made after the HFPA made some internal changes including adding 103 voters, making 51.5 percent of voters "racially and ethnically diverse."

Black voters now comprise 10 percent of the voting body. They also instituted more rules about gift giving and announced charitable donations.

Despite the claims of change from NBC and the HFPA, Fraser told GQ that he has his doubts and that "at the moment" he does not believe in HFPA's announced reforms.

“Maybe time will tell,” he said.