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Bradley Cooper
Bradley Charles Cooper (born January 5, 1975) is an
Bradley Cooper
American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various
accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and two
Grammy Awards, in addition to nominations for twelve
Academy Awards, six Golden Globe Awards, and a Tony Award.
Cooper appeared on the Forbes Celebrity 100 three times and on
Time 's list of the 100 most influential people in the world in
2015. His films have grossed $13 billion worldwide and he has
placed four times in annual rankings of the world's highest-paid
actors.
Cooper enrolled in the MFA program at the Actors Studio in
2000 after beginning his career in 1999 with a guest role in the
television series Sex and the City. He made his film debut in the
comedy Wet Hot American Summer (2001), and gained some Cooper in 2023
recognition as Will Tippin in the television series Alias (2001–
Born Bradley Charles
2006). After his role in the show was demoted, he began to have
Cooper
career doubts but gained some recognition with a supporting
January 5, 1975
part in the comedy film Wedding Crashers (2005). He had his
Abington Township,
breakthrough in The Hangover (2009), a critically and
Pennsylvania, U.S.[1]
commercially successful comedy that spawned two sequels in
Education Georgetown
2011 and 2013, and his career progressed with starring roles in
Limitless (2011) and The Place Beyond the Pines (2012). University (BA)
The New School
Cooper found greater success with the romantic comedy Silver (MFA)
Linings Playbook (2012), the black comedy American Hustle
Occupations Actor · film director ·
(2013), and the war biopic American Sniper (2014), which he
film producer ·
also produced. In 2014, he portrayed Joseph Merrick in a
screenwriter
Broadway revival of The Elephant Man and began voicing
Rocket in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In 2018, Cooper Years active 1999–present
produced, wrote, directed, and starred in the musical romance A Works Full list
Star Is Born. He won a BAFTA Award and two Grammys for his Spouse Jennifer Esposito
contributions to its U.S. Billboard 200 number one soundtrack (m. 2006; div. 2007)
and its chart-topping lead single "Shallow". He has since Partner(s) Zoe Saldaña
produced the thrillers Joker (2019) and Nightmare Alley (2021), (2011–2013)
and directed the biographical drama Maestro (2023), in which Irina Shayk
he also starred as Leonard Bernstein. (2015–2019)
Children 1
Awards Full list
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Cooper was named People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive in 2011. Cooper's voice
He supports several charities that help fight cancer. Cooper was
0:24
briefly married to actress Jennifer Esposito, and has a daughter
from his relationship with model Irina Shayk. from the BBC programme The Film
Programme, November 5, 2015[2]
Signature
Early life
Cooper was born on January 5, 1975, in Abington Township,
near Philadelphia, and grew up in the nearby communities of
Jenkintown and Rydal.[3][4][5] His mother, Gloria (née
Campano),[6] worked at KYW-TV, which was then Philadelphia's NBC affiliate.[3] His father, Charles
Cooper, worked as a stockbroker for Merrill Lynch.[6] Cooper's father was of Irish descent, while his
mother is of Italian ancestry (from Abruzzo and Naples).[7] He has an older sister, Holly.[8] He had
cholesteatoma in his ear soon after his birth, and punctured his eardrum when he started diving at an
early age.[9]
Describing himself as a child, Cooper has said: "I never lived the life of
'Oh, you're so good-looking'. People thought I was a girl when I was little,
because I looked like a girl – maybe because my mother would keep my
hair really long."[10] He excelled at basketball, and enjoyed cooking: "I
used to have buddies come over after kindergarten and I'd cook them
food. I prided myself in taking whatever was in the fridge and turning it
into lasagna."[11] He initially wanted to attend Valley Forge Military
Academy and move to Japan to become a ninja.[12] At an early age, his
father introduced him to films like The Elephant Man,[8] which inspired
him to be an actor.[13] Coming from a family of non-actors, Cooper says
his parents initially wanted him to pursue a career in finance and were
against acting, but they eventually changed their perceptions when they
saw Cooper play the part of Joseph Merrick in an excerpt from the play
The Actors Studio, where
The Elephant Man.[8][14] Cooper trained to be an
actor
While attending Germantown Academy, he worked at the Philadelphia
Daily News.[15] He says that in school he was neither "the smartest
person" nor "the coolest kid" and "really didn't have anything going on!"[16] After graduating from
high school in 1993, Cooper attended Villanova University for one year before transferring to
Georgetown University, where he majored in English and minored in French.[17][18] Cooper graduated
in 1997 with a Bachelor of Arts with honors.[5][19] He was a member of the Georgetown Hoyas rowing
team and acted with Nomadic Theatre.[20][21] While at Georgetown, Cooper became fluent in French
and spent six months as an exchange student in Aix-en-Provence, France.[22] In his television debut,
Sex and the City in 1999, he made a brief appearance opposite Sarah Jessica Parker.[23] Cooper later
served as a presenter on the tourism series Globe Trekker (2000), which took him to such places as
Peru and Croatia, and had a recurring role in the short-lived series The Street.[9][24][25]
Cooper had been interested in a career in diplomacy when he auditioned for the master class graduate
degree at the Actors Studio and was selected by James Lipton.[26] In 2000, he received a Master of
Fine Arts degree in acting from the Actors Studio Drama School at The New School in New York
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City.[27]There, he trained with the coach Elizabeth Kemp of whom he says: "I was never able to relax
in my life before her." She advised him on many of his films.[28] While studying in New York City,
Cooper worked as a doorman at the Morgans Hotel,[3] and briefly interacted with Robert de Niro and
Sean Penn in question-and-answer master class sessions, which were later featured episodes of Inside
the Actors Studio.[26]
Career
2001–2008: Early roles
Cooper missed his MFA graduation ceremony to film Wet Hot American Summer (2001), an
ensemble comedy that marked his cinematic debut. Taking place at a fictional summer camp in 1981,
the film had him play Ben, a counselor and the love interest of Michael Ian Black's character.[29]
Although the film was critically and commercially unsuccessful, it has since developed a cult
following. Cooper reprised the role in the film's prequel Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of
Camp (2015), an eight-episode Netflix series.[30]
In the television series Alias (2001–2006), Cooper achieved some success with the role of Will Tippin,
a local reporter for a newspaper and the best friend of Jennifer Garner's character, Sydney
Bristow.[23] Garner was one of the first people he met in Los Angeles and was, in Cooper's words,
"very maternal ... She wanted to take care of me, make sure I was okay all the time."[31] A writer for
Complex Networks called his character "arguably the heart of Season 1".[32] As his screen time began
to decrease, Cooper grew frustrated. Although he would work only three days, he requested creator J.
J. Abrams to write his character off the show.[33] Shortly after his conversation with Abrams, Cooper
tore his Achilles tendon while playing basketball. During his recovery, he considered quitting acting
permanently, though in 2004, he was cast in Wedding Crashers (2005).[33] During this period, he
acted in the 2002 psychological thriller Changing Lanes. The scenes in which he appeared were
edited out of the final cut of the film, but are featured on the film's DVD and Blu-ray releases.[34][35]
Other roles included in Bending All the Rules (2002),[36] the short-lived TV series Miss Match
(2003),[37] the television film I Want to Marry Ryan Banks (2004) and the WB series Jack & Bobby
(2004–2005).[38]
Cooper's career prospects improved with a more prominent role in David
Dobkin's comedy Wedding Crashers alongside Owen Wilson, Vince
Vaughn and Rachel McAdams.[5] In the film, he played Sack Lodge, the
competitive, arrogant and aggressive boyfriend of Claire (McAdams), a
role he described as "kind of a sociopath".[39] Cooper believed the
antagonistic character changed people's perception of him, as he had
previously played the "nice guy".[40] With a production budget of
$40 million, the film grossed over $285 million worldwide.[41] In
September 2005, Fox debuted the sitcom Kitchen Confidential, based on
Cooper at an event for The a memoir by chef Anthony Bourdain, with Cooper in the leading role.
Midnight Meat Train in 2007 Despite positive reviews for the series, the show was canceled after only
four episodes due to low ratings.[42][43]
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In March 2006, Cooper starred as Pip/Theo in Three Days of Rain on Broadway with Julia Roberts
and Paul Rudd.[44] This was followed by minor roles in the romantic comedy Failure to Launch
(2006) and the satirical comedy The Comebacks (2007).[38] Cooper next appeared in the fifth season
of Nip/Tuck (2007) as Aidan Stone, a television star on the fictional show Hearts 'N Scalpels. In
2008, he played the lead in Older than America,[38] and appeared onstage in a production of Theresa
Rebeck's play The Understudy at the Williamstown Theatre Festival alongside Kristen Johnston.[45]
Between his small roles of best friend to the main character in the 2008 comedies Yes Man and The
Rocker,[38] Cooper landed the lead role in the Ryuhei Kitamura-directed horror film The Midnight
Meat Train (2008), based on Clive Barker's 1984 short story of the same name. Playing the dark
character of a freelance photographer who tries to track down a serial killer was a departure from
Cooper's previous comedic roles and an experience he found enjoyable. The film received positive
reviews from critics, though it earned little at the box office.[46]
2009–2012: Breakthrough
In 2009 Cooper hosted Saturday Night Live with musical guest TV on
the Radio, portraying actor Christian Bale in one sketch,[47] and appeared
in a supporting role in the film He's Just Not That Into You.[48] Cooper's
breakthrough role came in Todd Phillips' comedy The Hangover
(2009).[8] He played Phil Wenneck, one of three friends (Ed Helms and
Zach Galifianakis) to wake up from a bachelor party in Las Vegas with no
memory of the previous night. The Hangover was a commercial success
and finished as among the highest-grossing R-rated films in the United
States.[49] A. O. Scott of The New York Times wrote, "Mr. Cooper ... offers
the most interesting variation on an old standard, playing his aggressive,
cocky frat boy with a snarl of rage that masks an anxiety as hard to
account for as it is to miss."[50] For his performance Cooper received an
award at the 13th Hollywood Film Festival and his first nomination for Cooper at the premiere of
The Hangover in 2009
MTV Movie Awards (Best Comedic Performance).[51][52] The Daily
Telegraph opined that the film's success turned Cooper into "a bona fide
leading man".[8] Nevertheless, Cooper stated in a 2011 interview with Shave: "It's the same. I mean,
look, more doors have been opened for sure, but it's not like I sit back with a cigar on Monday
morning and go through the scripts that have been offered."[53]
Also in 2009, Cooper featured in the psychological horror Case 39, a delayed production that had
been filmed in 2006.[54] He paired with Sandra Bullock in the comedy All About Steve, a film that was
panned by critics, failed to attract a wide audience and earned them a Golden Raspberry Award for
Worst Screen Combo.[55][56] Following a role in one of eleven segments of the anthology film New
York, I Love You (2009),[36] Cooper appeared in the ensemble romantic comedy Valentine's Day
(2010), directed by Garry Marshall, co-starring with Julia Roberts. The film was a commercial
success, grossing over $215 million worldwide.[57] He then starred in the comedy Brother's Justice
and as the fictional character Templeton "Faceman" Peck in the feature film version of The A-Team
alongside Liam Neeson, Quinton Jackson, and Sharlto Copley. To prepare for the role, he abstained
from consuming sugar, salt and flour, and underwent grueling workouts.[58] The film released to
negative reviews and poor box office returns.[59][60] Tim Robey of The Daily Telegraph wrote:
"Cooper confirms his credentials as perhaps the most smugly narcissistic performer,"[61] while Nev
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Pierce of Empire credited both Cooper and Copley for "acing swagger and insanity respectively, who
best both capture and yet re-forge their iconic characters".[62] Cooper appeared as guest host of WWE
Raw in June 2010.[63]
In 2011, Cooper starred in the techno-thriller Limitless, based on the
2001 novel The Dark Fields by Alan Glynn. In the Neil Burger-directed
film, he played a struggling writer who is introduced to a nootropic drug
that gives him the ability to fully utilize his brain and vastly improve his
lifestyle.[64] The box office website Box Office Mojo was apprehensive of
the film's financial prospects, but it emerged as a commercial success
with a worldwide gross of $161 million.[65][66] A writer for Variety said of
Cooper's performance that he "makes further strides toward major
stardom, spelling excellent early spring returns and socko vid play".[67]
Greater commercial success followed with the comedy sequel The
Hangover Part II (2011), which earned over $580 million worldwide.[68]
Reviews for the film were generally negative,[69] but Mary Pols of Time
Cooper at the 2011 San magazine complimented Cooper, writing that the actor "gives a knowing
Diego Comic-Con
performance: he's both the peacock and the parody of one. He's blessed
International
with good looks and fantastic timing, the kind that makes every line
funnier, even the small asides."[70] At the 38th People's Choice Awards,
he was nominated for Favorite Comedic Movie Actor.[71]
The year 2012 saw Cooper star in four films: The Words, Hit and Run, The Place Beyond the Pines,
and Silver Linings Playbook. The mystery drama The Words failed commercially, as did the action
comedy Hit and Run.[72][73] In Derek Cianfrance's critically acclaimed crime drama The Place Beyond
the Pines,[74] Cooper played a rookie police officer, a role Cianfrance specifically wrote for him. The
director drove five hours to Montreal to meet with Cooper to convince him to take on the role.
Cianfrance described Cooper's character as someone "paraded as a hero ... But inside him corruption
is going on, conflict is raging inside, guilt and shame are buried."[75] A reviewer for The Independent
credited Cooper for "excelling as an archetype, the principled man who is personally rather
dislikeable", adding, "I never imagined this actor capable of such layered character work."[76] Despite
positive reviews, the film had moderate box office returns.[77]
Cooper starred with Robert De Niro and Jennifer Lawrence in David O. Russell's romantic comedy-
drama Silver Linings Playbook, an adaptation of Matthew Quick's serio-comic novel of the same
name. He was cast as a divorced man with bipolar disorder, a former teacher who finds
companionship in a young, depressed widow (Lawrence). Cooper was initially skeptical about playing
the part which he thought was out of his depth, but he later accepted the role inspired by Russell's
confidence in him.[8] The director was impressed with his performance in Wedding Crashers, citing
his "good bad-guy energy" and unpredictability as justification for casting;[78] he also thought Cooper
would be able to demonstrate emotion and vulnerability onscreen.[79] To prepare, Cooper took dance
training with choreographer Mandy Moore, who describes Cooper as having "some real natural
dancing ability".[80] The film was a box-office success, earning $236.4 million on a production budget
of $21 million.[81] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone wrote that Cooper "seizes the juiciest role of his
career and meets every comic and dramatic challenge. There's an ache in his funny, touching and vital
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performance that resonates."[82]
For his performance, he earned an MTV Movie Award for Best
Performance, [83] and nominations for an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors
Guild Award for Best Actor.[84]
2013–2017: Established actor
In 2013 Cooper reprised his role as Phil Wenneck in the third and final installment of The Hangover
trilogy, The Hangover Part III, which was poorly reviewed by critics.[85] The critic for The
Independent argued that Cooper was "reduced to mugging for the camera, offering reaction shots to
nothing".[86] Nevertheless, like its preceding entries, the film was a commercial success, grossing
$362 million worldwide, and remains one of Cooper's highest-grossing releases.[87] Later that year, he
took on the supporting role of an unhinged FBI agent in David O. Russell's crime comedy-drama
American Hustle. Inspired by the FBI's Abscam sting operation, the film is set against the backdrop of
political corruption in 1970s New Jersey. It also starred Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner
and Jennifer Lawrence.[88] American Hustle was a critical and commercial success with global
revenues of $251.1 million.[89] Kim Newman of Empire wrote: "Cooper is stuck with the least
rewarding role, but keeps finding brilliant little bits of business to hold the attention," and praised "
[Cooper's] spot impersonations of his overly cautious (but smart) boss".[90] Cooper was nominated for
an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critics' Choice Movie Award, and a Golden Globe Award for Best
Supporting Actor, but did not win any.[91]
Cooper reunited with Lawrence in the Susanne Bier-directed drama
Serena, an adaptation of Ron Rash's period novel. The pair starred as a
married couple who become involved in criminal activities after realizing
that they cannot bear children.[92] The picture was filmed in 2012, but
was released in 2014 to negative reviews and poor box office
returns.[93][94] The Canberra Times' Jake Wilson stated: "Cooper once
again proves his value as a leading man who approaches his roles like a
character actor."[95] In 2014, Cooper provided the voice of Rocket
Raccoon in the Marvel Studios film Guardians of the Galaxy.[96] He
returned to Broadway for the 2014 run of The Elephant Man as the
severely deformed Joseph Merrick. Michael Coveney of
Whatsonstage.com wrote of his performance: "Cooper avoids every trap
of 'disability' acting by suffusing this outer appearance with soul and
passion. It's a wonderful, and very moving, display."[97] He garnered a Cooper at the French
premiere of American
nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play.[98]
Hustle in 2014
Also in 2014 Cooper co-produced and starred as United States Navy
SEAL sniper Chris Kyle in American Sniper, a biographical war drama directed by Clint Eastwood.[99]
The film tells the story of Kyle, who became the deadliest marksman in US military history, and is
loosely based on the eponymous memoir. To appear to be as large as Kyle, Cooper underwent
extensive training and followed a rigorous diet, gaining 40 pounds (18 kg) of muscle.[100] Cooper's
preparation also included lessons with a vocal coach, and studying footage of Kyle.[101] To learn how
to use a rifle, the actor trained with US Navy SEAL veteran Kevin Lacz, who served with Kyle.[102] The
film,[103] and Cooper's performance, received generally positive reviews. The critic for Variety wrote,
"an excellent performance from a bulked-up Bradley Cooper, this harrowing and intimate character
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study offers fairly blunt insights into the physical and psychological toll exacted on the front
lines."[104] Similar sentiments were echoed by USA Today's Claudia Puig who asserted, "It's clearly
Cooper's show. Substantially bulked up and affecting a believable Texas drawl, Cooper embodies
Kyle's confidence, intensity and vulnerability."[105] American Sniper earned $547 million worldwide
to become Cooper's highest-grossing live-action film and the third highest-grossing R-rated film of all
time.[87][106] Cooper won an MTV Movie Award for Best Male Performance, and was nominated for
an Academy Award for Best Actor; the film was nominated for Best Picture.[107][108] With these
nominations, Cooper became the tenth actor in history to receive an Academy Award nomination for
acting in three consecutive years.[a]
None of Cooper's films released in 2015 – Aloha, Burnt, or Joy – fared well at the box office.[87] He
starred in Cameron Crowe's Aloha with Emma Stone and Rachel McAdams.[110] The project was the
subject of controversy after the Media Action Network for Asian-Americans accused the filmmakers of
whitewashing the cast.[111] Despite the backlash, he was nominated for Choice Movie Actor – Comedy
at the 2015 Teen Choice Awards.[112] In John Wells' drama Burnt, Cooper played a chef who decides
to regain his former glory after drug abuse takes a toll on his career. While the film was criticized for
its "overdone clichés",[113] Jon Frosch of The Hollywood Reporter said: "[Cooper] gives a fully
engaged performance that almost makes us want to forgive the movie's laziness. Almost."[114] His
supporting role in the biopic Joy reunited him with David O. Russell and Lawrence.[115] In 2016, he
had a voice cameo in the thriller 10 Cloverfield Lane, and played a supporting part in War Dogs, co-
produced under his and Todd Phillips's production company Joint Effort.[116][117] In 2017, Cooper
again voiced Rocket Raccoon, in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.[118]
2018–present: Professional expansion
After reprising the role of Rocket Raccoon in Avengers: Infinity War (2018),[119] Cooper directed his
first film, A Star Is Born, a remake of the 1937 film of same name. Cooper starred in the film as an
established singer, Jackson Maine, whose romance with a woman named Ally (played by Lady Gaga)
becomes strained after her career begins to overshadow his.[120] Having long aspired to direct a film,
Cooper was keen on making a love story. People had warned him against directing a third remake, and
he feared the film would end his directing career if it failed.[121] The film premiered at the 75th Venice
International Film Festival in August 2018, and was released worldwide in October to critical
acclaim.[122][123] On Cooper's direction, Owen Gleiberman of Variety wrote that "to say that [Cooper]
does a good job would be to understate his accomplishment" and that he "gets right onto the high
wire".[124] Brian Tallerico, writing for RogerEbert.com, said Cooper "does some of the best work of his
career" and gives "an excellent performance", praising his singing abilities and chemistry with
Gaga.[125] The film earned over $436 million at the box office against a production budget of
$36 million.[126]
Cooper spent nearly four years working on the project, including spending five days a week taking
voice, piano, and guitar lessons for six months in preparation for the role.[127][128] He and Gaga co-
wrote and produced most of the songs on the soundtrack for A Star Is Born, which she insisted they
record live. Cooper undertook vocal training for 18 months to prepare, including with the help of vocal
coach Roger Love.[129][130] The album contains elements of blues rock, country and bubblegum
pop.[131] Billboard says its lyrics are about wanting change, its struggle, love, romance, and bonding,
describing the music as "timeless, emotional, gritty and earnest. They sound like songs written by
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artists who, quite frankly, are supremely messed up but hit to the core of
the listener."[132] The album's release coincided with the film's, and it
contains 34 tracks, including 19 original songs. It received generally
positive reviews from critics;[133] Mark Kennedy of The Washington Post
called it a "five-star marvel" and Ben Beaumont-Thomas of The Guardian
termed it an "instant classics full of Gaga's emotional might".[131][134]
Commercially, the soundtrack reached number one in the US, Ireland
and the UK.[135] The record's lead single, "Shallow", was released that
September[136] and reached number one in the US, Australia, Ireland,
Switzerland and the UK.[137]
Cooper at the premiere of A
Star Is Born in 2018. He For the film, Cooper received a National Board of Review Award for Best
starred, co-wrote, co- Director and two Golden Globe nominations, for Best Actor in a Drama
produced, directed, and and Best Director.[138][139] Cooper earned two Grammy nominations for
contributed to its "Shallow": Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
soundtrack.
(winning the latter). The soundtrack as a whole received seven Grammy
nominations across two different ceremonies.[140] At the 72nd British
Academy Film Awards, A Star Is Born received seven nominations, five of which were for Cooper:
Best Film, Best Direction, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film
Music, winning only the last of these. As a result, Cooper became the first person with five
nominations in a single ceremony in BAFTA's history.[141] Cooper was also nominated for three
Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay.[142] He later remarked that
he was "embarrassed" by his failure to gain a directing nomination at the ceremony.[143]
Cooper next reunited with Clint Eastwood in The Mule (2018), a crime film based on the life of World
War II veteran Leo Sharp in which Cooper played a DEA agent.[144] In 2019, Cooper co-produced
Todd Phillips's psychological thriller Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix.[145] It grossed over $1 billion
worldwide, making it the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time, and earned him nominations for an
Academy Award for Best Picture and a BAFTA Award for Best Film.[146][147][148] Cooper returned as
Rocket in Avengers: Endgame (2019), which briefly became the highest-grossing of all time.[149]
Both of Cooper's 2021 releases – the coming-of-age comedy drama Licorice Pizza and the
psychological thriller Nightmare Alley – received critical acclaim,[150] but fared poorly at the box
office.[151] In his eight-minute role of film producer Jon Peters in Paul Thomas Anderson's Licorice
Pizza, Jenelle Riley of Variety found Cooper to be a "scene-stealer". Riley wrote he "somehow
manages to be both absurd and menacing. It's the rare scene that is almost too intense to watch, yet
you also don't want it to end."[152] Nightmare Alley, an adaption of William Lindsay Gresham's
namesake novel, cast Cooper as an ambitious carnival worker, for which he took boxing lessons and
performed his first full frontal nude scene, which he found challenging. Owing to the COVID-19
pandemic, the film took a long time to finish.[153] Reviewing his films in 2021, critic Charles Bramesco
opined Cooper gave "his most vulnerable and harrowing performance to date" in Nightmare
Alley.[154] Cooper garnered a fourth nomination for the Academy Award for Best Picture for
producing the film.[155]
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