'We just had to do it': Bradley Cooper speaks out about prosthetic nose controversy in 'Maestro'

Bradley Cooper defended his use of a prosthetic nose in the coming film “Maestro,” in which he plays the legendary composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein.

Bradley Cooper defended his use of a prosthetic nose in the coming film “Maestro,” in which he plays the legendary composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein. 

After the trailer for the Netflix film — which Cooper co-wrote and directed — was released in August, some criticized his use of a prosthetic nose as antisemitic.

Cooper said in an interview on “CBS Mornings” that aired Tuesday that he wasn’t fazed by the backlash. 

“My nose is very similar to Lenny’s, actually. So the prosthetic is actually like a silk sheet, and I thought, 'Maybe we don’t need to do it, because we can take down time of prep.' But it’s all about balance. My lips are nothing like Lenny’s, and my chin. And so we had that, and it just didn’t look right,” he said. 

“So when he’s young we have a prosthetic here, and it just moves out, so by the time he’s older, it’s the whole face. So we just had to do it; otherwise I wouldn’t believe he’s a human being,” he added, motioning to his face.