Brendan Fraser, star of The Mummy, gave an emotional acceptance speech at the Critics’ Choice Awards, leaving the audience in tears.

Fraser won the Best Actor award for his portrayal of an obese man in Darren Aronofsky’s film The Whale.

After nearly a decade of being out of the spotlight, Fraser made a remarkable comeback with this role.

Fraser was visibly moved by the honor, giving a tearful speech that left some members of the audience visibly emotional.

“I was in the wilderness and I probably should have left a trail of breadcrumbs,” he said to scattered laughter.

He then went on to thank the film’s director, Darren Aronofsky, saying, “You found me and like all the best directors you showed me where I had to go to get to where I needed to be.”

As he continued his speech, Fraser addressed those struggling with obesity or feeling lost, saying, “If you are a guy like Charlie who I play in this movie and in any way struggle with obesity or you feel like you’re in a dark sea, then I want you to know that you too can have the strength to just get to your feet and go to the light. Good things will happen.”

Fraser underwent a remarkable transformation for his role in The Whale, both physically and emotionally.

Apart from gaining weight, he also donned prosthetics to play Charlie, who weighs 270kg.

His performance earned him an eight-minute standing ovation when the film screened at the Venice Film Festival in September last year.

The psychological drama is now hotly tipped for an Oscar.

Fraser’s career had flatlined after his 2013 thriller Breakout went straight to DVD.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the actor had a string of blockbuster hits including The Mummy films, Encino Man and George of the Jungle.

However, health problems and injuries that prevented him from being cast in action films, the death of his mother in 2016, his divorce and his son’s autism diagnosis meant he eventually disappeared from the Hollywood spotlight.

But Fraser’s fortunes changed when Darren Aronofsky tapped him for The Whale.

He was happy to attend the Critics’ Choice Awards, but in 2018 he revealed that he would no longer attend Golden Globes events, which are hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, because of an alleged sexual assault at a luncheon in 2003.

Fraser claimed that former HFPA president Philip Berk had sexually assaulted him at the event, a claim Berk has denied.

“His left hand reaches around, grabs my ass cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint (the perineum). And he starts moving it around,” Fraser told GQ.

He said he told his wife at the time, but decided not to go public about the incident.

“I became depressed. I was blaming myself and I was miserable – because I was saying, ‘This is nothing; this guy reached around and he copped a feel’,” Fraser said.

When footage of Fraser’s tearful Critics’ Choice acceptance speech emerged on Twitter, fans went wild.

“The emotion. The hugs. The love for him in that room. SO DESERVED,” one fan wrote.

“OMG! He made cry!” said another.

“Definitely didn’t expect for Brendan Fraser to make me teary today,” wrote a third.

“Glad he won. He’s a great guy and deserves the award.”