In later years, when Russell Crowe looked back on his role in the Ridley Scott-directed drama, Gladiator, for which he earned an Academy Award, he candidly revealed a sense of embarrassment about the honor this now-cult classic brought him. Despite his profound admiration for the ensemble cast during filming, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the script fell short of his expectations and was a total sham, in his words, “absolute rubbish.” Consequently, when the movie exceeded all predictions, receiving enormous acclaim, the actor couldn’t help but question whether it genuinely deserved all the love.
Thus, in a popular Vanity Fair YouTube series, Russell Crowe delved deep into the various aspects and career choices he made throughout his illustrious four decades in the industry. And it was during this introspective conversation, that he delved deep into the film that would forever be etched in his legacy.
Russell Crowe Is Embarrassed to Be Recognized for Gladiator
Being a seasoned actor with Gladiator marking his twentieth film, Russell Crowe never questioned his capabilities as a leading man or the director, Ridley Scott. However, his qualms lay with the script itself. While he acknowledged the film’s great concept, he feared that the discerning modern-day audience might not embrace the lackluster screenplay they had on offer. Interestingly, the movie’s inception began with a mere 21-page bundle, setting the stage for the journey that would eventually captivate audiences worldwide. He revealed to Vanity Fair,
“I was confident about my abilities as a leading man. What I wasn’t confident about with Gladiator was the world that was surrounding me,–At the core of what we were doing was a great concept, but the script, it was rubbish, absolute rubbish.”
Continuing his thoughts, he then elaborated on the precise reasons why he regarded the script of the now-classic that everybody loves in such a way. He said,
“It had all these sort of strange sequences. One of them was about chariots and how famous gladiators used certain types of chariots and some famous gladiators had endorsement deals with products for olive oil and things like that, and that’s all true, but it’s just not going to ring right to a modern audience. They’re going to go, ‘What the f— is all this?’ The energy around what we were doing was very fractured.”
Acknowledging his internal struggle, Crowe openly confessed to considering walking away from the film. He also discussed the last time he watched the movie, reflecting on the mixed emotions of both pride and embarrassment stemming from the acclaim it had garnered.
“I did think maybe a couple of times, maybe my best option is to just get on a plane and get out of here,—Last time I saw ‘Gladiator’, I actally watched it in the Coliseum in Rome and I actally got a little bit embarrased that I’d received so much attention for that film“
Fans are now glad, the actor chose to stay and deliver a performance of a lifetime that they have grown to love and cherish over the years.
The Audience Reception of Gladiator “Freaked” Russell Crowe Out!
As Russell Crowe reminisced about the thunderous reactions from the audience during Gladiator’s climactic fight scene, he admitted that he could never have fathomed such a wild response even in his wildest dreams. The actor was absolutely smitten upon witnessing the shape that the movie took upon its release and the years following. He said,
“When I first saw it, I was blown away by it. When I first saw it with a crowd, that’s when it really freaked me out because it was like going to a movie when I was a kid. People were so connected to the film, and they were voicing that connection.”
He then expressed how the audience embraced and made the film their own, transcending the initial shortcomings of the script that kept him up at night. The actor said,
“The Emperor puts that knife under Maximus’ arm towards the end. People were angry, they were standing in their seats and going [points at screen] and calling him a motherf–ker and all that. And I was like, “Whoa! This is big.””
Looking back, Gladiator still stands as a monumental film in cinematic history. While it may have taken some liberties with historical accuracy, its powerful narrative and captivating characters won the hearts of both critics and audiences. It emerged as the second highest-grossing film of 2000, earning a staggering $503 million worldwide, and bagged 12 Academy Awards nominations in total.
Source: Vanity Fair
