Making his appearance at the 2025 edition of the Mediterrane Film Festival, Russell Crowe gave a speech wherein he explained that he ‘became a man’ while in Malta.
He explained that this stems from his continuous fight to keep the integrity of the character of Maximus for Gladiator, which was filmed by Ridley Scott while here in the country.
Crowe admitted it was not an easy production, and ‘sometimes you get lucky enough to make something that resonates with people.’
Russell Crowe talked about shooting “Gladiator” at the #MediterraneFilmFestival on Sunday, saying “In Malta I became a man.” pic.twitter.com/T5FSdJI45t
— Pat Saperstein (@Variety_PatS) June 30, 2025
‘Whatever films I’d done before then, nothing had the majesty, ambition and budget, and ultimately, reach, of Gladiator’, Crowe told the crowd.
He recounted a heartwarming story about how he met another man who was reduced to tears upon meeting him. The fan explained to Crowe that when he was young, his mother sat him down in front of a TV and showed him Gladiator.
She had told him that if he ever wondered what type of man his mother expected him to be, it was just like Maximus.
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Credit: Variety_PatS Twitter
The event attracted a large crowd eager to discover the intricacies of the Palace’s restoration. Two simultaneous tours were led by Heritage Malta architects, Perit Katya Maniscalco and Perit Veronica Micallef, who provided detailed insights into the project’s extensive refurbishment. Tours were offered in Maltese and English, highlighting the meticulous restoration works funded by a generous allocation of €18 million from the European Regional Development Fund. The restoration project, which commenced in 2016, was successfully completed in 2023.