Bradley Cooper sobbed during a phone call with Leonard Bernstein's son amid the 'Maestro' prosthetics controversy.
The actor/director faced a storm of criticism over whether he should have worn a prosthetic nose to play the late composer - who was Jewish - in the new biopic but he was defended by Bernstein's family who released a statement backing his decision to use make-up to look more like his subject.
Cooper has now confessed he broke down in tears during an emotional call with Bernstein's son Alexander. During an appearance on CBS News, he explained: "I read it [the statement], and I called Alex [Bernstein] to thank him ... and I remember I called him on the phone, and I heard his voice. And then I couldn't believe it, but this huge emotional exhalation came out, and I just was crying so hard, I couldn't even thank him. And he started crying.
"And it was an incredible moment. And ... sometimes you don't even know what's going on, you know ... I couldn't believe that gesture. It was very moving to me."
The family statement - which was released in August - stated: "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.
"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. We're also certain that our dad would have been fine with it as well."
In the interview, Cooper went on to explain why he decided to press ahead with using the prosthetic, admitting it "didn't look right" without it.
He added: "I thought: 'Maybe we don't need to do it ... But it's all about balance, and ... my lips are nothing like Lenny's, and my chin. And so we had that, and it just didn't look right."
