Bradley Cooper is a big name in the film industry and has been a part of many incredible films. Cooper undoubtedly has a successful career today; his struggles to reach the height where he is today cannot be overlooked. The toughest facet of Cooper’s career was his initial phase in the industry, where he did secure some roles, but he wasn’t very content with them.
His struggle escalated to the extent that the actor decided to give up on acting. Fortunately, a role in the film Wedding Crashers once again ignited his hope in his career, and he got back on track.
The initial phase of Bradley Cooper’s career took a great toll on him
Bradley Cooper is one of the most celebrated actors in the Hollywood industry and his passion for acting is very evident in his work. However, there was a time when the actor struggled really hard to get a deserving role in the industry.
During an interview with GQ Magazine, the actor opened up about the toughest facet of his career. In 2001, the actor secured his debut film role in Wet Hot American Summer. At the same time, Cooper was also cast in the drama series Alias.
The series comprises five seasons and a very talented star cast including Jennifer Garner, Michael Vartan, and Cooper himself. While filming the series, what initially looked very promising to Cooper for his part turned out to be a myth when the series proceeded.
Cooper, who played the role of a journalist named Will Tippin, saw his role becoming less substantial as the show progressed. He grew frustrated by this and decided to leave the show. The actor said,
“I would only work three days a week. And then for the second season, I got even more sidelined. I was like, ‘Ugh.’ And then next thing you know, I was like, ‘I want to fucking kill myself.'”
Even though his fellow actors tried to convince him to stay in the show, Cooper was adamant about leaving it despite knowing that he had no other job in hand after it. He went straight to the filmmaker of Alias, J.J. Abrams, and asked to be written out of the show. Interestingly, the filmmaker agreed and let him leave the show. Cooper recalled,
“J.J. was like, ‘Okay.’ He probably would’ve fired me, anyway.“
If this wasn’t enough, Cooper later met with an accident due to which he couldn’t proceed to look for other roles for a year.
Bradley Cooper became despondent about the future of his acting career
Two weeks after leaving Alias, Bradley Cooper injured himself while playing basketball, tearing his Achilles tendon. Since his wound was severe, the actor had to spend an entire year on a couch.
The phase was very difficult for Cooper as sitting idle at home made him so despondent about his career that he started thinking about quitting acting. The actor said,
“At some point, you have to come to terms with The business just doesn’t want you, you know what I mean?”
However, the actor eventually got healed and once again revived his profession. The actor made his comeback with the 2005 rom-com film Wedding Crashers.
Source: GQ
