Accused of “Jew Face”, actor Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born, Very Bad Trip) is at the heart of criticism. Netflix unveiled the trailer for the film Maestro on Tuesday August 15. In the biopic, the American comedian, who plays Jewish composer Leonard Bernstein, appears with a prosthesis that enlarges his nose. This artistic choice was strongly denounced by Internet users and certain actors. According to them, it would feed the clichés about Jewish people.
On social networks, users liken this false prosthetic nose to “Black Face”, this practice where white actors blacken their faces to embody the roles of black people. “The real Leonard Bernstein did not have the funny nose that Bradley Cooper wears in Maestro, reports a surfer to the Journal de Montréal. It seems completely pointless to have gone in that direction given the uncanny resemblance.” Jewish actress Tracy-Ann Oberman (EastEnders) also reacted to the matter on Page Six. “If Bradley Cooper can play Elephant Man without any prosthesis, he should be able to play a Jewish man without the need for a prosthesis,” she says.
Daniel Fienberg, critic of The Hollywood Reporter, had also deemed the wearing of this prosthesis “problematic” in May 2022, when the first images of Maestro were revealed by Netflix. But Bradley Cooper still received support from Jewish actor Joshua Malina, star of West Wing. “Jews don’t have bigger noses than others, Leonard Bernstein does. That’s all there is to it for me.”
“These criticisms broke our hearts,” report Jamie, Alexander and Nina, the three children of Leonard Bernstein. The composer’s family defended Bradley Cooper on Wednesday August 16 on X (formerly Twitter). In a press release, the siblings claim to be “perfectly in agreement” with the choice to “use artifices to amplify the resemblance” with their father. “Leonard Bernstein happened to have a nice big nose. Bradley Cooper chose this makeup to accentuate the likeness, and we have no problem with that, reacted Jamie, Alexander and Nina. We are also certain that our father would not have had a problem with it. According to the composer’s children, such criticism is “a dishonest attempt to downgrade a successful person – a practice we have seen too often against our own father.”
Written and directed by Bradley Cooper, Maestro tackles the tormented relationship between Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre, played by Carey Mulligan (The Great Gatsby). The film, which is due to premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September, could make the comedian a contender for the Best Actor Oscar. The feature film should be available on the Netflix platform in December.
The Bernstein family, of Jewish and Ukrainian descent, immigrated to the United States in 1918. Composer Léonard Bernstein became one of the greatest conductors of his time. The American notably conducted the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and is remembered for his score of West Side Story, a major Broadway hit. He was married to Felicia Montealegre for almost 25 years, before leaving her to live out his homosexuality in the 1970s. Bernstein died in 1990 of lung cancer.
