Is that you, Russell Crowe? The 59-year-old actor shared new pictures of himself clean-shaven after five years of rocking a beard. Russell took to X (formerly known as Twitter) earlier this week to show that he shaved off all of his facial hair.
“The actor prepared #20. First shave since 2019,” he tweeted alongside the selfie. In the photo, Russell wore a pair of glasses and posed for the camera stone-faced.
The Beautiful Mind star did not reveal what specific role he shaved his beard for, but he was cast in the film Nuremberg for the role of Nazi party leader Hermann Göring. Russell will also be seen in two upcoming movies that are slated to premiere this year: Kraven the Hunter and Sleeping Dogs.
The actor prepares #20.
First shave since 2019. pic.twitter.com/e48ctxh9GY— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) February 19, 2024
In response to the new image he shared, social media users couldn’t believe the difference in how he used to look.
“Wow, you look 20 years younger!” one X user commented. “You’ve shaved off 20 years of age,” another added, while a third chimed in, “20 years younger instantly.” However, a separate person pointed out that Russell already had “a nice face,” but it “was hiding behind all that hair.”
Apart from his physical appearance, Russell recently opened up about work during an interview with PEOPLE. While speaking with the publication, the Gladiator actor recalled a “small mishap” that occurred while filming Robin Hood, causing him to fracture both of his legs.
“I jumped off a castle portcullis onto rock-hard uneven ground,” he explained. “We should have prepped the ground and buried a pad, but we were in a rush to get the shot done in the fading light. … With hundreds of extras around, arrows flying and burn pots setting the castle on fire, there was no pulling out. As I jumped, I remember thinking, ‘This is going to hurt.’”
Despite the painful stunt that he performed, Russell “never discussed the injury with production, never took a day off because of it, I just kept going to work.”
“It was like an electric shock bursting up through my body,” he added, referring to the force of the injury. “We were shooting a big movie, so you just struggle through, but the last month of that job was very tricky. There was a number of weeks where even walking was a challenge.”
Russell concluded the painful tale by noting, “Apparently I finished that movie with two broken legs. All for art. No cast, no splints, no painkillers, just kept going to work and over time they healed themselves.”