A24 has shared the first glimpse at Darren Aronofsky’s Brendan Fraser-starring The Whale.
The minute-long teaser trailer includes shots of main character Charlie (Fraser) interspersed with moments of his home, the beach, and his 17-year-old daughter played by Sadie Sink.
“Do you ever get the feeling people are incapable of not caring?” Charlie says in a voiceover. “People are amazing.”
Charlie is an English teacher who struggles with obesity. After the death of his lover, he turns to chronic binge-eating and ultimately decides to eat himself to death. However, his relationship with his child might be the salvation he needs.
In addition to Fraser and Sink, The Whale also stars Hong Chau, Samantha Morton, and Ty Simpkins. It’s directed by Aronofsky (Black Swan, Requiem for a Dream) and adapted from Samuel D. Hunter’s play of the same name.
The movie received a six-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival in September.
“It felt so affirming,” Fraser later told Variety of the reception. “I was emotional because it was acknowledgment that what we did is making an impact. And that kind of response feels completely new in my professional life.”
Dwayne Johnson—who got his acting start in the Mummy franchise—congratulated his “brother” Fraser for his performance following the ovation. The Rock took to Twitter, writing, “Man this makes me so happy to see this beautiful ovation for Brendan. He supported me coming into his Mummy Returns franchise for my first ever role, which kicked off my Hollywood career. Rooting for all your success brother and congrats to my bud Darren Aronofsky.”