Russell Crowe has shared some news that has left fans feeling emotional.
Russell Crowe is a Hollywood icon.
The actor’s trademark, rugged good looks saw him become an on-screen heartthrob.
The actor and filmmaker has appeared in some of the most notable movies of our generation.
His performance in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, went on to earn him the Academy Award for best actor and cemented his Hollywood star status.
But he hasn’t always been on the big screen.
In the mid-’80s, Crowe began performing in musicals, touring with The Rocky Horror Picture Show from 1986 to 1988 as Dr. Frank N. Furter.
He even dabbled in the music scene…
In the late ’70s, Crowe co-founded the rock band Roman Antix, serving as a songwriter, guitarist, and lead singer. Talk about multifaceted!
The band then turned into the Australian rock band Thirty Odd Foot of Grunts (abbreviated to TOFOG).
And even went on to release 3 albums before calling it quits in 2005.
After this, he decided to focus more on his acting career.
From the start of his career, he had the ability to really tap into the characters he was portraying, so, of course, it wasn’t long before he gained recognition for his work.
In 1991, Crowe appeared in the Australian movie Proof.
His performance was so impressive, that he received the best supporting actor award from the Australian Film Institute.
And the awards just came pouring in thereafter…
Not only did his role in Romper Stomper (1992), in which he played a neo-Nazi, earn him an AFI best actor award, but it also caught the attention of Hollywood.
And he started getting cast for more blockbuster hits.
Well, you’d think it would be an upward trajectory from there.
But that wasn’t the case.
Sadly, his first American movie, The Quick and the Dead (1995), and several other Hollywood flicks that followed had little success at the box office.
But he carried on despite the outcome.
Crowe’s knack for complex performance combined with a well-written story in crime drama L.A. Confidential, cooked up a commercial and critical smash hit.
Which subsequently shot him back into the spotlight.
And several of his late-’90s movies became successes in their own right — including The Insider (1999), which saw Crowe bag an Academy Award nomination.
Then he went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Gladiator (2000).
He seems to have had success after success, with several more lucrative awards under his belt.
And he’s gained a large fan base due to his talents.
But, in more recent years, many people have expressed their shock over his change in appearance.
Despite this, the internet couldn’t help but cruelly pick apart his appearance online in his most recent movie Unhinged.
With many branding him as unrecognizable to his former Gladiator self.
Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts, with one tweeting: “Russell Crowe looking like John Goodman in this movie.”
Soon after, Crowe was bashed for something entirely different.
The actor went on a private tour of the Sistine Chapel last year.
He got the chance to experience what most don’t, to see the Vatican museum in all its glory, without thousands of people crowding the halls.
After the experience of a lifetime, he shared his photos on Twitter.
“I’m not sure there’s a more special privilege in the world than to hold the key for the Sistine Chapel and to experience its glory in silence,” he captioned his pics.
Adding: “A very special experience as a family yesterday. Got to walk through the Vatican Museum by ourselves. Amazing. My mum had walked these corridors with my father 20+ years ago with the thousands of tourists that flock here daily and make it the third most popular museum globally.
“We were given access to rooms, perspectives, and parts of the collection you don’t get to see as a regular tourist.
“As we squeezed into a tiny private elevator and ascended to a balcony few get to see, she squeezed my hand and said ‘I wish your father was here’.
“We stepped onto the balcony, a majestic sweeping view of Rome. From somewhere in the Vatican we could hear the Swiss Guard band rehearsing.”
While it was clearly a special moment for Crowe and his family, many Twitter users took offense to his pictures, as taking photos of the chapel is forbidden.
One Twitter user wrote: “Did you get special permission to take photos at Sistine Chapel?”
Another outraged user commented: “You’re not supposed to take photos in the Chapel Russel, you should know better.”
A third said: “Somebody explain please to the other 99 percent of human beings in the world, even those who were born in Rome, why they JUST CAN’T experience the wonder of the Sistine Chapel in silence, while he can.”
You can see his photos here.
Crowe has also recently stumbled into another controversy!
Russell Crowe and his girlfriend Britney Theriot were denied service at an Australian restaurant.
The reason? Crowe’s clothing wasn’t up to par.
“He went there wearing a brand new Ralph Lauren polo having just played a game of tennis and was turned away,” Crowe’s manager Grant Vandenberg told the Daily Mail Australia.
However, the restaurant has doubled down on their decision.
“We treat everyone the same. It doesn’t matter who you are or if you are Russell Crowe. We’ve got a dress code that we push across every level,” owner Kristian Klein told The Herald Sun.
“We’re consistent with it and I don’t feel like it’s unreasonable.”
“But I know personally if I’m in my thongs and my boardies, I’m not going to try and go to a nice restaurant, because I wouldn’t be dressed appropriately.
“We put so much effort in what we do. And we expect everyone to sort of respect us like we respect the guests.”
The restaurant then shared a cheeky Instagram in Crowe’s honor.
“Dress smart casual, unless you’re Russell Crowe, then wear whatevs,” the new sign reads.
The restaurant captioned the post: “Dear Russell, During your last visit it seems we got off on the wrong foot. After much reflection on what occurred, we have made a permanent change to our dress code.
“We would love to see you again in the future, you’re always welcome at Mr. Miyagi.”
But this week, Crowe has gone viral once more for a rather spooky story.
Crowe is set to star as an Italian Catholic priest and exorcist Gabriele Amorth in the terrifying new film, The Pope’s Exorcist.
And he’s revealed he had an otherworldly encounter during filming, to UNILad.
“I think we were all aware of keeping ourselves sane throughout the course of the shoot,” he said. “There were certainly little strange coincidental things happening but you’ve got to keep your balance with that.”
“I arrived home once and there was a dead bird in the center of the doorway of the house I was staying in and birds are quite symbolic within the movie.”
“But I rationalized that a different way in my head – that there must be some creature in the woods around where I was living that had realized I had gone away for a few days and was leaving me a welcome home gift,” he said.
Now, Crowe has shocked fans for a recent facial upgrade.
In recent years, the legendary actor has embraced his facial hair, letting a large grey beard grow.
His beard has become so prominent in recent years, you could say it’s become part of his persona.
First shave in five years…
With that being said, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that fans were shocked when Russell revealed earlier this week that he got rid of his beard.
He shared the big news in a post on X, posting a picture of his beardless face along with the caption: “The actor prepares #20. First shave since 2019.”
It’s not exactly clear whether the shave was for a role in an upcoming project, but his caption makes that seem like the case.
Reactions to the change were mixed, as seen in the comments section of Crowe’s post.
“Wow, you look 20 years younger!” one fan wrote.
Another added, “Looks good! It’s nice to change it up and shave. You have a nice face it was hiding behind all that hair.”
Of course, not everyone is happy with the change, with one fan saying, “Sorry, I liked you better with the beard.”