The star was recognised for his incredible performance in A24’s The Whale.
He beat out some stiff competition, including Austin Butler for Elvis, Tom Cruise for Top Gun: Maverick, Colin Farrell for The Banshees of Inisherin, Paul Mescal for Aftersun, and Bill Nighy for Living.
There has been a lot of awards buzz for Fraser after The Whale debuted last year and he’s copped his first big gong.
It’s clear the moment was a big deal for the 54-year-old as he makes his big Hollywood comeback following years of being out of the spotlight.
When he got on stage, he was overcome with emotion.
“This movie, The Whale, it’s about love, it’s about redemption,” he said.
“It’s about finding the light in a dark place and I’m so lucky to have worked with an ensemble that is incredible.”
He gave a huge shoutout to his costars Hong Chau and Sadie Sink before praising director Darren Aronofsky for helping bring the story to life.
“Darren Aronofsky, I was in the wilderness, and I probably should have left a trail of breadcrumbs, but you’ve found me,” he added.
“And like all the best directors, you merely just showed me where to go to get to where I needed to be.”
The Whale sees Fraser play Charlie, a reclusive 600lb English teacher, who attempts to reconnect with his 17-year-old daughter (portrayed by Sink).
It tackles a lot of heavy topics and Brendan has spoken about the work he did to accurately play someone like that.
During his acceptance speech, he said anyone can pull themselves out of a rut if they put their mind to it.
“If you, like a guy like Charlie, who I played in this movie, in any way, struggle with obesity, or you just feel like you’re in a dark sea,” he said.
“I want you to know that if you too, can have the strength to just get to your feet and go to the light. Good things will happen.”
He did his best to hold back tears during the end of the speech and loads of people in the audience leapt to their feet to give him a standing ovation.
According to Deadline, Fraser said the award means ‘more than I know how to say with words’.
“We all approached this piece as if it were the first and last time we would ever have a chance to do this kind of work…I think that this movie can help do a lot of good,” he said.
