Mark Wahlberg thanks Jacki Weaver for support as he grieved mum’s death

Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg has revealed how Aussie actress Jacki Weaver helped and comforted him through the death of his beloved mother Alma.

Uncharted star Mark Wahlberg has revealed how Aussie actress Jacki Weaver helped and comforted him through the death of his beloved mother Alma.

Weaver was playing Wahlberg’s mother in the new movie Father Stu last year when mother-of-nine Alma, 78, passed away.

“Jacki played my mom and what a performance she gave,” Wahlberg told The Daily Telegraph. “Her playing my mum and having lost my mum during the movie and the kind of love and support that she gave me during that process and that difficult time is something that I’ll never forget.”

Wahlberg told The Daily Telegraph Jacki Weaver’s performance and the support she offered was unforgettable.

“I was lucky to have somebody so sweet and so loving playing my mum,” Wahlberg, 50, said of Weaver. “She gave probably one of the best performances of her career and that’s saying a lot.”

The movie, co-starring Mel Gibson and directed by his girlfriend Rosalind Ross, is a true story of a boxer turned priest that saw Wahlberg pack on almost 14 kilograms for the role. He has said losing the weight now that he is older is harder than in the past.

“I’ve been kind of doing this fast to lose the weight and so going 18 or 19 hours a day without eating and then I have a short window to eat,” he said. “I feel a little bit tired or sluggish once I eat other than that I feel energised.”

Wahlberg won’t be able to indulge in many of his new restaurant’s burgers. Picture: Supplied

Not helping his diet is his burger chain Wahlburgers which opens its first Australian restaurant at Circular Quay which will have a table for family dining dedicated to his mother.

“We thought that was very special because the dinner table was always the most important thing,” he said. And it is in a great spot.

“Sydney Harbour is only one of the most iconic locations in the entire world. We were kind of thinking about what other locations you could compare it to, maybe Times Square or you know Hollywood Boulevard or the Hollywood sign but it is absolutely gorgeous. I cannot wait to see the restaurant,” he said.

Wahlburgers will open its flagship Australian restaurant in Circular Quay on Thursday. Picture: Supplied

Wahlberg came to Australia briefly during the Covid lockdown and spent two weeks in isolation in Byron Bay where he was “not allowed to even dip a toe” in the ocean and three days shooting an ad for Ladbrokes in Sydney.

He was planning to come to Australia soon to shoot a World War Two movie called Destroyer but that is back on the shelf.

“We’re now possibly pivoting to something else that we could shoot there so nothing is set in stone. You know I’ve been one to talk about getting movies made and if they don’t happen then you sound like you’re full of crap,” he said. “So I’m just going to wait until it’s a go and then right before I get on the plane I’ll make my announcement and then I’ll get to see the whole entire country.”

His next movie is a James Bond style caper called Our Guy From Jersey set in London that could be the start of a series that would move to Australia. “He definitely puts his mark on England and hopefully in future stories he will be putting his mark on Down Under as well,” Wahlberg said. “I’m very excited about it.”