Leonard Bernstein's family defends Bradley Cooper's portrayal in Maestro amid 'Jewface' controversy

The children of composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein are defending actor Bradley Cooper's portrayal of their late father in an upcoming biopic.

After the first trailer for Maestro was released this week, some critics on social media raised concerns a prosthetic nose worn by Cooper to portray Bernstein in the film reinforce hurtful anti-Semitic stereotypes, labelling it 'Jewface'.

Other critics have questioned the casting in the first place considering Bernstein's heritage. He was born in Massachusetts to Jewish immigrants from Russia, while Cooper is not known to be of Jewish ancestry.

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Old photos of a young Bernstein show a striking resemblance to the Hollywood heartthrob, which also raised question of a need for the prosthetic makeup in the first place.

Bernstein's three children Jamie, Alexander and Nina took to Instagram on Wednesday to share a statement about the backlash Cooper has faced since the release of the trailer a day earlier.

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"Bradley Cooper included the three of us along every step of his amazing journey as he made his film about our father," their statement reads.

"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. It breaks our hearts to see any misrepresentations or misunderstandings of his efforts."

They also directly addressed criticism about Cooper's physical appearance as their father.

"It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose. Bradley chose to use makeup to amplify his resemblance, and we're perfectly fine with that," the statement continues.

"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."

The Netflix film follows Bernstein and his 25-year marriage to Felicia Montealegre, played by Carey Mulligan.

In addition to the lead role, Cooper also co-wrote, co-produced and directed Maestro, according to IMDb.

It's his first directorial work since 2018's Oscar-winning A Star is Born, which included Lady Gaga.

Hollywood heavyweights Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg are also among the film's producers.

Cooper has not yet publicly commented on the controversy. CNN has reached out to his representatives.

"At all times during the making of this film, we could feel the profound respect and yes, the love that Bradley brought to his portrait of Leonard Bernstein and his wife, our mother Felicia," the family statement concluded.

"We feel so fortunate to have had this experience with Bradley, and we can't wait for the world to see his creation."

Leading the backlash was Jewish British actress Tracy-Ann Oberman who revealed why she felt the makeup choice was wrong, in an emotive post.

"If Bradley Cooper green lights your film to play the Jewish composer Bernstein and you want him over a Jewish A-Lister who can equally play that role – then let Bradley Cooper's acting be so magnificent and truthful that the character of Bernstein shines through what he already looks like.

"If he needs to wear a prosthetic nose then that is, to me and many others, the equivalent of Black-Face or Yellow-Face."

The EastEnders actress added: "Bradley Cooper managed to play the ELEPHANT MAN without a single prosthetic then he should be able to manage to play a Jewish man without one.'

However, West Wing star Joshua Malina held a different point of view and said Cooper hasn't done anything offensive in his opinion.

'I do not take issue with Bradley Cooper being made to look like a real person," the Jewish actor told Page Six.

"Were an actor to don a big hooked nose to play Shylock, or a random, fictitious Jew, I think I'd have a problem with the propagation of a well-worn antisemitic stereotype.

"Jews do not, in fact, have bigger noses than other people do; Leonard Bernstein did. That's the end of the story for me."

Maestro is set to make it's debut during the Venice Film Festival next month. However, it's not known if Cooper will attend due to the on-going strikes in Hollywood.

- Reported with CNN.

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