- James Corden says he auditioned for the lead role in the critically acclaimed film “The Whale.”
- “I’m going to play that part, and Tom Ford is going to direct,” the talk show host told Deadline.
- The role was given to Brendan Fraser, who had awards season success for his performance.
James Corden said he was considered for the leading role in the Oscar-winning film “The Whale” before Brendan Fraser was cast.
In his latest Deadline column, critic Pete Hammond shared that in a conversation with “The Late Show,” host Corden told him he was originally set for the starring role.
“I was going to play that part,” Corden said, discussing the acclaimed film, which earned Frazier a Golden Globe nomination in December.
In Darren Aronofsky’s “The Whale,” Fraser plays Charlie, a fat and reclusive English teacher who tries to get along with a 17-year-old Daughter Allie (Sadie Sink) reconnects.
According to Corden, however, he was on the cast for a reason, though the 44-year-old actor feared he was too young to do the role justice compared to the 54-year-old Fraser.
Additionally, Corden said fashion designer and filmmaker Tom Ford was originally tapped to helm the project, which is based on a script by Samuel D. Hunt, who also wrote the screenplay for the film.
Corden added that “Tom Ford was supposed to direct,” but that didn’t happen because the Nocturnal Animals director wanted more control.
Brendan Fraser in “The Whale.”
A24
Ford isn’t the only filmmaker working on the project, as Corden also claims that George Clooney was also briefly involved in the film.
According to the British actor, the “Ocean’s Eleven” star said he would only make the film if the role of Charlie could be played by a truly unknown 600-pound actor. This was a big deal for Clooney, whose version of the story never materialized.
Hammond added that Aronofsky corroborated everything Corden said about the film’s development in a separate interview.
Corden also recently admitted that he auditioned for the role of Samwise Gange in the Lord of the Rings trilogy in his early twenties.
On an episode of the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, Corden said: “Everyone in London auditioned for The Lord of the Rings, and everyone, I auditioned for Samwise.”
“I’m auditioning for Samwise. I’m doing it, accent and everything! ‘Mr. Frodo!'” he says, mimicking the character’s country western accent.
Still, despite calling his auditions “bad,” Corden was called back twice to play Frodo’s loyal friend. However, it ended up in the hands of American actor Sean Austin.
