Maximum Russell Crowe

(Detail of Russell)

(Detail of Russell)

The following is from "Bucky the Sociology Major" who was close to the set while filming took place at Princeton University.

Russell on the set:

Basically, it's been a really relaxed, fun shoot. Extras were told not to talk to the actors unless spoken to, Russell in particular because he stays in character and is always trying to focus. He really didn't speak to many people. Very quiet. All the same a fun guy. During close-ups of another actor, at one point he collapsed on the ground like he was having a seizure, to see if he could make the guy blow it. (The guy already had a few great takes; this was just a safety.) Of all the actors there, he seemed the most committed and hard-working. Even when he isn't in the shot, he stays to make sure the other actors have someone to bounce off of. A real professional.

They are playing "Go". (See below) They had five setups of the exact same game. Nash (Russell) knocks it over in anger and walks off. Then they bring out the next board and do it over. According to an extra I talked to, Nash loses, but only because the game is flawed mathematically. He figures it out in his head. They call him a poor sport. He goes away and comes back later with evidence that the game is flawed mathematically, just like in the book.

(Detail of Russell)

The biggest problem on the days outside were the pigeons. Every take they let these pigeons out of a cage that Russell then looks at and says something about. And every take, the pigeons wouldn't go in the direction they were supposed to go and every take they would have to catch them all again. That got a little tedious. At one point Ron and Russell both were herding them back in the proper direction between takes. The next day of shooting there was a protest by some Princeton students. I think they were saying "Hey, ho, the Marlboro man has got to go." They had Marlboro signs and I think they had cutouts of cameras on them too. (This might have been a reference to Russell from The Insider, but none of us could figure it out. Really stupid protest.) For the most part the Princeton students were cool and happy about the production being there. (See the pigeon photos here Scroll.)

On the now notorious "one-finger salute":

The flipping the bird incident was ridiculous. These girls kept yelling from their windows and screaming at Russell while he is trying to focus on the scene. First he asked if something could be done about the flashes going off, then he just gave up, looked at her and flipped her the bird. He was just joking around. She thought it was hilarious. Everyone is blowing it out of proportion.

On director Ron Howard and other actors in the film:

Ron Howard is about the nicest guy on the planet. He is always friendly with everyone. Russell and Anthony Rapp (another super professional actor and super nice guy) between setups would often play chess. Anthony was often seen talking to the extras. Really cool. Judd Hirsch plays Russell's professor in the 1940s. He is a very professional actor as well.

Ron Howard on the set.
(Photo by and thanks to Robbie)

Kevin also reports that the filmimg on the set seemed to go well. They did each shot 4-5 times, sometimes changing angles. Afterwards, Russell greeted fans and happily signed autographs. After getting in the truck to leave, he noticed Kevin's flash go off, looked at it for a few seconds and then smiled & waved at him.

Lynne only has good things to say about how Russell treated fans on the Princeton set:

The thing that impressed me the most was Russell Crowe's congeniality to the crowd. When I saw him, he was making his way to a car to leave the set. However, he stopped to say hello, shake hands and sign autographs for quite a few people. I was particularly impressed by the attention he paid to children who were there. He bent over to speak to them at their level and with a sparkle in his eye, seemed really interested in talking to them. As a mother of six (although none of my six were with me at the time), I thought this was wonderful!