The family of Jewish composer Leonard Bernstein defended actor Bradley Cooper wearing a large prosthetic nose in his depiction of him in an upcoming movie, which was deemed “anti-semitic.”
In a statement to the “Today” show, Bernstein’s family said they were “perfectly fine” with Cooper’s portrayal of him in the film “Maestro” set to hit theaters on November 22.
“Bradley Cooper included the three of us along every step of his amazing journey as he made his film about our father. We were touched to the core to witness the depth of his commitment, his loving embrace of our father’s music, and the sheer open-hearted joy he brought to his exploration,” the conductor’s family stated.
They added, “It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of his efforts. It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose.”
They also emphasized they had no issue with Cooper using makeup “to amplify his resemblance.”
Furthermore, Bernstein’s children claimed he would approve of Cooper’s look in the movie.
“Any strident complaints around this issue strike us above all as disingenuous attempts to bring a successful person down a notice, a practice we observed all too often perpetrated on our own father,” they continued.
His family concluded their statement revealing they felt “the profound respect and yes, the love that Bradley brought to his portrait of Leonard Bernstein and his wife, our mother Felicia” throughout the entire film showcasing their stormy 25-year marriage.
“We feel so fortunate to have had this experience with Bradley, and we can’t wait for the world to see his creation,” they shared.
This came after Cooper, 48, was slammed on X, formerly known as Twitter, for his “anti-semitic” appearance.
“Just looked up a picture of the real leonard bernstein…. the big antisemitic prosthetic nose on bradley cooper was definitely not necessary….,” one user wrote.
just looked up a picture of the real leonard bernstein…. the big antisemitic prosthetic nose on bradley cooper was definitely not necessary…. pic.twitter.com/nrCgxi9jlL
— louisa🍉 (@stabfreeman) August 15, 2023
One user accused Hollywood of using “Jewface” in the caption of a photo of Bernstein and Cooper side-by-side.
“Why is Bradley Cooper playing Bernstein? He’s not Jewish-now a standard rule in Hollywood for other ethnicities [and] he is not nearly as handsome as Bernstein,” the user wrote.
Leonard Bernstein (left) and clownface Hollywood's #Jewface on right
— 🇺🇸 Pamela Geller 🇺🇸 🇮🇱 (@PamelaGeller) August 16, 2023
Why is Bradley Cooper playing Bernstein? He's not Jewish-now a standard rule in Hollywood for other ethnicities & he is not nearly as handsome as Bernstein.
He needs a hook nose to play a Jew?#Antisemitism pic.twitter.com/G9XC3IPrIt
The user also inquired whether the Oscar-nominated actor need “a hook nose to play a Jew.”