Bradley Cooperis recalling a time when a director implied he wasn’t deserving of the number ofOscarnominations he’d received.
The 47-year-old actor chatted withJason Bateman,Will ArnettandSean Hayesfor the June 13 episode of theirSmartLesspodcast, saying he was at a party four years ago when a director told him, “What world are we living in where you have seven nominations and she’s only got three?” referring to Cooper’s “dear friend” actress who was with him at the party.
“I was like, ‘I f—ing hate this business,’ " said theNightmare Alleyactor. “I’m like, ‘Bro, why are you such an a–hole? Like, go f— yourself.’ "
Coopernoted during the conversationthat he “never forget[s] anything anybody mean has ever said,” and brought up another time years earlier when, at the same party, a “hero female” actress mocked his inclusion in the Best Actor category at the 2013 Oscars, which marked his first-ever nomination at the awards show.
Bradley Cooper.Vivien Killilea/Getty Images
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According to Cooper, he was “levitating” at being nominated for his role inSilver Linings Playbookalongside acting legends such asDaniel Day-LewisandDenzel Washington, when the actress in question implied he didn’t deserve to actually take home the win.
“This hero female actress, that I didn’t know at all, comes up to me, she goes, ‘I saw your movie. You deserve thenom,’ " he told Arnett, 52, Bateman, 53, and Hayes, 51.
“Then like 10, 20 minutes later — I’m not kidding — I pass her going to the bathroom and she mouths it: ‘Thenom.’ I remember [thinking], ‘What the f— is this town?’ " Cooper said. “Can you imagine saying that to somebody? You’ve got to be f—ed up to do that.”
In addition to theSilver Liningsnod, Cooper was nominated for Best Supporting Actor forAmerican Hustle, Best Actor forAmerican Sniper(which he also produced, earning him recognition with the film’s Best Picture nomination), Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay forA Star Is Born(and recognition in Best Picture category). Since the encounter with the unnamed director, Cooper went on to nab two more Academy Award nominations: for 2019’sJokerand 2021’sNightmare Alley, both of which he co-produced and were up for Best Picture.
Bradley Cooper.Larry Busacca/Getty
During his conversation onSmartLess, Cooper and Arnett also discussed times when they struggled with their emotional and mental health as recovering addicts. They both noted thatbecoming a dad positively affectedeach of their journeys to have healthy relationships with themselves.
“You have this wonderful thing or breakthrough with a script, or you have a wonderful moment on this set or in an editing room … you have like 40 of those moments every day with your kid that are that level of joy,” he added. “That’s not spinning it, that’s just the truth.”
source: people.com
