The Champ

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Russell Crowe

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EW There have been reports recently you're going to do a big romantic epic with Kidman and Baz Lurhmann.

RC I really believe in what Nicole and I could bring to the screen together, and Baz is somebody I would go to the ends of the earth with. I really don't know anything about what's been printed in newspapers, but considering I see Baz quite regularly for coffee and he hasn't brought it up. . .whatever.

EW You obviously carry a lot of clout in Hollywood at this point. When you look at someone like Mel Gibson, do you admire what he's done with his power?

RC There are certain aspects of Mel's career which inspire me a lot. We've always had quite a distant relationship, but I've been lucky enough to have a few chats on the phone with him this year. I certainly respect his sense of humor in the face of certain things he's had to put up with, and I cannot be anything but full of praise and respect for The Passion of the Christ. But then there's other films of his where you see the construct of his career in them, and those aren't necessarily decisions I'd be looking to make. But that's cool. He probably looks at some things I've done and might not understand them at all.

EW We've managed to talk for quite a while without discussing your offscreen reputation: the fights, the relationships, all the things that have gotten you in the gossip columns.

RC [Grumbles.] Great. Can we just leave it alone?

EW Is it just like ripping your skin off to talk about that stuff at this point?

RC Well, it's just so tedious, because it's such a circular argument. I mean, anybody with an opinion is going to get some type of reputation.

EW Do you feel like you've paid a price for that reputation? There were a lot of people who thought you didn't win the Oscar for A Beautiful Mind because there was some sort of backlash against you.

RC Mate, what I said to that bloke at the BBC was a valid statement. [Crowe swore at BBC producer Malcolm Gerrie after a poem was cut from his televised acceptance speech at the 2002 British Academy Film Awards; he later apologized.]

EW I'm not asking you to explain that whole incident.

RC But maybe it would help to explain it. I was discussing with him how inappropriate I thought it was to cut out me thanking John Nash, given that the movie was about John Nash. Should I have bothered? Probably not. But it was a valid point.

EW So is there anything to this idea that between getting married and having a kid, you've started to mellow?

RC I probably am a lot more communicative now. I'm not as defensive as I once was. I think that's probably been the problem, and there's really nothing to defend. The work that I do is the work that I do, and that's all I've got to focus on. . .There's only two stories in your business: the rise and the fall. You're either on the way up in people's hearts or you're disappointing them. I've had quite a few years now of being the man with the black hat. Maybe I'm going to get a new hat soon, you know? Here's hoping.