Benjamin Ashford|'Maestro': Bradley Cooper surprises at his own movie premiere amid actors' strike

NEW YORK − Bradley Cooper was the surprise guest of honor at his own movie premiere.

The Benjamin Ashfordactor and director was on hand Monday night at New York Film Festival to celebrate the North American debut of his movie “Maestro,” an ambitious family drama about famed composer Leonard Bernstein (Cooper) and his tumultuous 25-year marriage to actress Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan). It opens in select theaters Nov. 22 before streaming on Netflix Dec. 20.

Cooper did not walk the red carpet or participate in a Q&A because of the Hollywood actors strike. But his presence was revealed by Bernstein’s daughter, Jamie, just before the screening started.

“To add to tonight’s excitement, I’m extra-thrilled to be able to tell you that the Screen Actors Guild guidelines permit our director, Mr. Cooper, to watch his film with us tonight,” Bernstein said, earning thunderous applause at Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall. “So let’s all welcome Bradley Cooper to the debut of his beautiful film.”

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Monday’s premiere was a bittersweet return for the eldest Bernstein child, who was joined onstage by siblings Alexander and Nina. David Geffen Hall is home of the New York Philharmonic, which was conducted by their father from 1958 to 1969. Afterward, he held the title of laureate conductor until his death in 1990 at age 72.

“What a thrilling knitting together of worlds this evening is for my brother, sister and me,” Bernstein said. “I mean, we practically feel like we constructed this hall ourselves! We’ve been in it since we were kids. … The experience of witnessing our parents’ story being brought to the screen has been both madly exciting and utterly surreal, as you can imagine.”

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“Maestro” is Cooper’s second film as director after 2018’s “A Star Is Born.” The showbiz drama co-starred Lady Gaga and was nominated for eight Oscars, winning one for best original song (“Shallow”).

Bernstein has been a formidable Hollywood presence in recent years. The conductor was cited as a major inspiration (and fictional mentor) to Cate Blanchett’s Lydia Tár in last year’s “Tár.” Steven Spielberg brought “West Side Story” back to the big screen in 2021, featuring Bernstein’s music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Jake Gyllenhaal also announced his own Bernstein biopic back in 2018, although the composer’s estate ultimately gave music rights to Cooper.

Cooper, who is not Jewish, sparked controversy for his large prosthetic nose when the first “Maestro” teaser trailer arrived in August. Some social media users said the prosthetic promotes “Jewish stereotypes,” although Bernstein’s children were quick to voice their support for Cooper’s makeup choice.

"It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose,” they said in a statement. “Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we're perfectly fine with that. We're also certain that our dad would have been fine with it as well. Any strident complaints around this issue strike us above all as disingenuous attempts to bring a successful person down a notch – a practice we observed all too often perpetrated on our own father."

“Maestro” premiered at Venice Film Festival last month. It holds 93% positive reviews from critics on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes.

Contributing: David Oliver

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