With a career spanning several decades, Russell Crowe has no shortage of credits to his name, and now, three more of his films are available to stream. This month, as it checked off titles from its October 2023 content list, Netflix treated subscribers to several of Crowe’s popular films, with 2000’s Gladiator, 2001’s A Beautiful Mind, and 2005’s Cinderella Man now available to stream on the platform.
Joining the streamer’s lineup on Oct. 1, Gladiator is perhaps one of Crowe’s most well-known titles. Enjoying a theatrical release in May 2000 and directed by Ridley Scott, the epic historical drama stars Crowe as Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius, the film documents Maximus’ betrayal by Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). After being sold into slavery and trained as a gladiator, Maximus rises through the ranks of the arena. The film was a box office hit, grossing $503 million worldwide, a number that made it the second highest-grossing film of 2000 behind Mission: Impossible 2. Boasting an 80% critics score and 87% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, Gladiator was also a critical success and went on to win five Academy Awards at the 73rd Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe.
Videos by PopCulture.com
Also currently streaming on Netflix is the biographical film A Beautiful Mind. Released in 2001, the movie stars Crowe as mathematician and Nobel Laureate in Economics John Nash. Based in part on Sylvia Nasar’s biography A Beautiful Mind, the movie follows Nash’s journey of self-discovery after he accepts secret work in cryptography. Directed by Ron Howard, the film also stars Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly, Paul Bettany, Adam Goldberg, Judd Hirsch, Josh Lucas, Anthony Rapp, and Christopher Plummer. The movie grossed over $313 million worldwide, won four Academy Awards, for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Connelly, and holds a 74% critics score and 93% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
The final of the trio of Crowe films set to arrive next month is Cinderella Man. The 2005 biographical sports drama film reunited Crowe with Howard for a film about the real life story of world heavyweight boxing champion James J. Braddock. The movie, also starring Renée Zellweger and Paul Giamatti, grossed $108 million against a budget of $88 million and received three Academy Award nominations, including Best Supporting Actor for Giamatti. On Rotten Tomatoes, where it holds an 80% critics score and a 91% audience score, a critics consensus reads, “with grittiness and an evocative sense of time and place, Cinderella Man is a powerful underdog story. And Ron Howard and Russell Crowe prove to be a solid combination.”
When they arrived on Netflix on Oct. 1, the three films joined the streamer’s existing catalogue of Crowe’s credits. Netflix is also home to The Pope’s Exorcist, State of Play, Boy Erased, The Nice Guys, and Robin Hood, giving fans of the actor plenty of options.
