Tom Hooper’s Les Misérables is incredibly decisive, and the stage adaptation fell under much criticism, with the movie’s harshest critique falling on Russell Crowe’s casting, although he was perfect for the role. The actor was truly the perfect cast for Inspector Javert. For the most part, Hooper’s directed movie is a rather considerable feat and, as one of the first cinematic adaptations of the stage, Les Misérables still mostly holds up today. The film went on to win numerous awards, including Anne Hathaway’s triumph as Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Interestingly, the film sparked more criticism after the 85th Academy Awards, where Hathaway received online hate for her accomplishment alongside the abundance of criticism directed at Crowe. The protestations of Les Misérables were only exacerbated by the well-documented fact that Hooper recorded the film’s musical performances live, in a creative endeavor to try and capture the raw emotion of the stage. Although the director’s vision sparked unfavorable attention, it made the performances all the more impressive. Including Crowe, who comes from a musical background — a venture that has earned the actor plenty of praise and acclaim throughout his career.

Why Russell Crowe’s Performance In Les Misérables Is So Divisive

Crowe Was Criticized For Being Too Stale In Comparison To His Costars

Crowe’s depiction of Inspector Javert was mostly slated for his voice being described as wooden, or not as emotionally free as the other cast members who are singing live. While it is difficult to compete with the vocally trained likes of Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean, this accounts for a lot of the actor’s criticism. Crowe may have been regarded as wrong for the role by numerous critics, but his voice is, in actuality, the ideal baritone for the Inspector and is more than ideal for the big screen, which demands something different from the stage performance.

In fact, the rugged quality of Crowe’s voice makes him more vulnerable and this is much more suited to the character he portrays, for the man who is lost in confounds of moral justice. It was important that Hooper cast Crowe in the production as he believed “for this story to work, you need a guy who could get the better of [Jackman].” (via Time) The director was vaguely aware of the actor’s musical pursuits, but it was not until later that Hooper discovered his background in musical theater, telling Time, “[Crowe] worked harder than anyone to get vocally fit for this.”

Russell Crowe Has A Music Career That You May Not Know Of

Russell Crowe Has Released Many IPs And Albums

Crowe is not only a fine actor, but he is a distinguished craftsman who kickstarted his professional musical career with 30 Odd Foot Of Grunts, who released albums before they disbanded in 2005. Since then, Crowe has been through a number of reconstructions before settling with his most recent group almost four years ago. In 2024, Crowe’s band had a European tour with the Indoor Garden Party to promote their album, Prose and Cons, which saw numerous sold-out venues across the globe. The actor made his Glastonbury debut last year, too, urging the crowds to forget his acting job.

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The actor-musician addressed the audience at the festival who would “see a serious band […] full of monster musicians.” (via Sky News) Crowe even revealed at one of his gigs with the Indoor Garden Party last year that legendary singer, Johnny Cash, had sent him a letter praising his songwriting — telling him to keep up the good work and continue with the venture. Needless to say, this is an outstanding accomplishment that will have influenced Crowe’s work on a large scale. This has ultimately led Crowe to be more active in the music scene of late, with acting taking a backseat.

Russell Crowe Has Been Focusing More On Music In Recent Years

Crowe Hasn’t Been Putting Out Quality Content Of Film In Recent Years

It is abundantly clear that Russell Crowe has placed plenty of effort into his music profession of late, while his films have not been performing well. Crowe’s recent movies are continuing an unfortunate trend, and only two of the actor’s latest 10 movies have been awarded “fresh” scores on the review aggregator, Rotten Tomatoes. Rumors briefly spread in 2023 after the actor publicly addressed retirement, although nothing has come to light since then. However, it is looking more difficult to say whether Crowe may be moving more towards music full-time, which would be a very exciting shift.

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In the interview with Good Morning Britain, the hosts asked the star to choose between acting and music, to which Crowe revealed he would “just start making movies that involve music.” It is more than obvious that music is something incredibly personal to the actor, which is the main reason Crowe rejected the role of Johnny Cash in Walk The Line. Even predating Les Misérables, Crowe has been transparent about his projects, saying “music is really important to me. It’s a big creative thing that I don’t give up.” (via Far Out Magazine)

Source: Time, Sky News, Good Morning Britain