Russell Crowe Talked About The Bloody Birthday Video
Actor Russell Crowe had a bloody good time with a prank he once pulled on filmmaker Ron Howard during the production of “Cinderella Man.”
In the 2004 clip, Crowe boasts of recovering from shoulder surgery ― but as he speaks, blood gushes from his shoulder.
“While training for Cinderella Man I experienced a subluxation of my left shoulder which required surgery,” Crowe wrote as he retweeted the video. “I knew that Ron Howard and the studio were concerned so I thought I’d send a video to relax them.”
NEVER SEEN BEFORE FOOTAGE : Warren Beaton @doctinfoil made @russellcrowe BLEED for @RealRonHoward s birthday, with @steve.rosewell at Studio Kite Australia back in 2004! BEST FUN morning!❤️ Thanks SO much Rowan MacKenzie @Mackenziesfx for connecting with Russell❤️ pic.twitter.com/3yfZSlDe6F
— MacKenzieSFX 🏴 (@MackenzieSFX) May 14, 2022
Warren Beaton, a special effects artist for the “Lord of the Rings” films, created the effect for Crowe. He wrote on Twitter that it was “the BEST fun Special Effects morning EVER!” and compared it to something out of a Monty Python skit.
He added in a follow-up tweet:
…My 10 liter blood pressure-pot ran out of fake blood. The "splats" at the end were the air emptying the hoses under that jacket😁
— DocTinfoil (@doctinfoil) May 14, 2022
Crowe said he was “back in the ring” just three weeks later, probably without the blood.
“Cinderella Man” is part of internet lore in another way: Crowe sold off memorabilia, including a jockstrap he wore in the film, during his 2018 “divorce auction.”
That jock strap was among the items won by “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver, who donated them for display in what at the time was one of only a few Blockbuster video stores left.
