Russell Crowe at 60: “I’ve Got a Sh** Ton of Regrets”
Russell Crowe is acknowledging some of his missteps, and defending the superhero movie process in the wake of Dakota Johnson’s Madame Web comments.
The 60-year-old actor, who next appears in Sony’s latest Spider-Man Universe film Kraven the Hunter, gave a candid interview to GQ in which he seemed to address past reports of bad behavior.
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“I’m in awe of people these days who say, ‘I have no regrets,'” Crowe said. “Really? Not one single thing you ever did. Right? You’re so fucking perfect. I’ve got a shit ton of regrets. An angry word, an overreaction, a missed opportunity for friendship — lots of things like that. But all of those things are in perspective, because I’ve done lots of really cool shit too. My regrets are, in a way, badges of honor. Having the ability to have that introspection and go, ‘You know, the other day you were a fucking dick, mate. Do your best not to be a fucking dick like that again.'”
Amid giving acclaimed performances in films such as Gladiator, the Oscar-winning actor has a long history of allegations of unfriendly behavior and angry outbursts — though such reports have quieted in recent years.
Crowe was also asked about Johnson saying that the recent box office disappointment Madame Web felt like it was “made by committee” and pushed back on the notion that actors should have high personal artistic expectations for making films in the genre.
“I don’t want to make any comments to what anybody else might have said or what their experience is, but … you’re bringing out the impish quality of my humor,” he reportedly said with a laugh. “You’re telling me you signed up for a Marvel movie, and some fucking universe for cartoon characters … and you didn’t get enough pathos? Not quite sure how I can make this better for you. It’s a gigantic machine, and they make movies at a certain size. And you know, I’ve experienced that on the DC side with Man of Steel, Zack Snyder, and I’ve experienced it on the Marvel side via Disney with Thor: Love and Thunder … These are jobs. You know: Here’s your role, play the role. If you’re expecting this to be some kind of life-changing event, I just think you’re here for the wrong reasons.”
Continued Crowe: “It can be challenging, working in a bluescreen world, when you have to convince yourself of a lot more than just the internal machinations of your character. But for anything to be … and you can’t make this a direct comment on her because I don’t know her and I don’t know what she went through, and the fact that you can have a shit experience on a film … Yeah, you can. But is that the Marvel process? I’m not sure you can say that. I haven’t had a bad experience. I mean [on Thor], OK, it’s a Marvel movie, but it’s Taika Waititi’s world, and it was just a gas every day, being silly. And then, with J.C. Chandor on Kraven, I’m just bringing a little weight to the circumstances, so the young actors have got an actor they can bounce off … You know, so many of these directors have a certain skill level — freaking genius people. Think about what’s required, right? … Whether it’s [Proof director] Jocelyn Moorhouse or it’s Ridley Scott, you’re talking about hanging out with geniuses.”
Asked if he regretted passing on a film, Crowe said, “Only one,” and declined to name the picture. (“It was a biopic of a musician that I love. I kind of felt there was a cheating aspect to it, you know. It would put me in a position from a music career perspective that I wouldn’t have earned.”)
Previously, Johnson told Bustle about making Madame Web: “It was definitely an experience for me to make that movie. I had never done anything like it before. I probably will never do anything like it again, because I don’t make sense in that world. And I know that now. But sometimes in this industry, you sign on to something, and it’s one thing and then as you’re making it, it becomes a completely different thing, and you’re like, ‘Wait, what?’ But it was a real learning experience, and of course it’s not nice to be a part of something that’s ripped to shreds, but I can’t say that I don’t understand.”
She continued: “It’s so hard to get movies made, and in these big movies that get made — and it’s even starting to happen with the little ones, which is what’s really freaking me out — decisions are being made by committees, and art does not do well when it’s made by committee. Films are made by a filmmaker and a team of artists around them. You cannot make art based on numbers and algorithms. My feeling has been for a long time that audiences are extremely smart, and executives have started to believe that they’re not. Audiences will always be able to sniff out bullshit. Even if films start to be made with AI, humans aren’t going to fucking want to see those.”
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