Howden - Russell Crowe - The Biography : the Biography

I t was 1994 and a young actor was auditioning for a role in a film that has since been acclaimed as one of the best movies of all time. Most actors aiming to make their mark in Hollywood would have sat nervously and waited patiently for their chance to impress. A nod in agreement here, a smile there and a polite shake of the hands at the end thanking them for their chance.

The intense young man sitting in front of the casting director was no such actor. Having explained in no uncertain terms that he should be given the part in The Shawshank Redemption above everyone else, despite his lack of Hollywood experience, he left the room confident that he had stated his case.

The producer chased after me, the actor recalled in a 2000 interview, and said: Youve got to get smart, kid. You cant just come into meetings and be that honest, because no one is going to care.

He was then given the advice that he should put on an American accent and do everything he could to convince them that he was from there.

I told her that if I could con a director into giving me a role, I wouldnt want to work with him, because Id believe he was fucking stupid. When I meet a director who understands what the job of acting is, then Ill work with him.

Whether things actually happened the way he said it did is beside the point it was an encounter that sums up Russell Crowe perfectly.

Straight talking, self-confident and possessing of an immediate dislike for anyone who doesnt take what he does seriously are qualities that have always been present in the actor. Of course, that also seems to go hand in hand with insecurity issues and a striving for acceptance and to be loved. But in a town where studio bosses like their films made with minimum of fuss, that sort of behaviour is flagged as one thing and one thing only trouble.

Russell approaches his roles with an intensity that other actors cant and wont reach. And woe betide anyone who cant see that for themselves.

Its something that has always been with him and it still rages inside now. Russell wants his roles to mean something, and even now he is dismissive of actors who have hit the big time and rested on their laurels.

I dont use my celebrity to make a living. I dont do ads for suits in Spain like George Clooney, or cigarettes in Japan like Harrison Ford. And on one level, people go, Well, more fool you, mate, because theres free money to be handed out. But to me its kind of sacrilegious its a complete contradiction of the fucking social contract you have with your audience. I mean, Robert De Niros advertising American Express.

That kind of credibility thing doesnt get me any Brownie points at all. There doesnt seem to be that understanding of why you bother to not prostitute yourself.

A quick look at his background and you would be excused for thinking that Russell was always destined for a life in films. His parents, Alex and Jocelyn Crowe, his grandfather and his mothers godfather were all involved in the movie world.

But his parents involvement in the industry was limited to on-set catering, while his grandfather, Stan Wemyss, was a film documenter during World War II a job that he did so well that he won an MBE for his bravery and was lauded by his peers for his stark, graphic black-and-white images of troops under fire.

That said, his familys involvement with the industry meant that it was a world that Russell could flit in and out of whenever he chose. From a very young age I spent the hours after school, weekends and holidays on film sets. I ran around knocking on all the doors and annoying the adults, you know? It took away that mystery. I knew when something came on television that there was nothing behind that faade.

Growing up in this environment was no doubt thrilling for a young mind but, through observing what worked, what didnt and what different directors wanted, he was almost learning a new language. And it was a language that agreed with him, fitting in perfectly with a working environment that is far more intense than most.

Being an actor is not for everyone. It can be tedious, with hours upon hours spent waiting around and it can mean fits of rage because the pressures and long hours become common. But, it is all done to serve the script, and when you step up to utter your dialogue, everything that has gone before is forgotten in an instant. That magical moment when its just you and your co-stars nothing else matters. The arguments, the endless discussions about the script and the occasional stroppy moment that could get you fired in any other industry mean nothing if you can bring it together when it matters.

You could say that Russell fell into the job because of his childhood surroundings, but then you could just as easily say that Russell was always destined to flourish in these surroundings.

His blistering screen performances have made him one of the greatest actors of his generation. But his headline-grabbing antics off-camera have also ensured that hes become one of the most read about as well.

In short, hes a movie star in every sense of the word. A mongrel of Hollywood history the glamour and stoicism from the early days of the film industry blended with the intense method acting of the 1960s and 1970s.

This is his story.