Richard Giant of the Hollywood blockbuster Russell Crowe, who starred in the movie Gladiator, has been in Turkey confirming arrangements for the filming of his next film and whilst there he revealed how much he liked the country.
In his film, Crowe will bring to the big screen the story of an Anzac soldier who fought at the Battle of Dardanelles. He recently met with Turkey’s Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik at Topkapi Palace, and has visited different cities to locate filming sites.
Said Crowe, an Australian, after his meeting with Çelik: “This is my third trip to Turkey. I really love this country, it has always mesmerized me.” He added that he had visited Edirne, Fethiye and Cappadocia in search of potential locations for filming. In addition, Crowe said that he was thinking of requesting the assistance of Minister Çelik to get in touch with selected Turkish actors to take part in the film project.
Minister Çelik commented: “Of course, this film’s scenario is crucial in that it highlights the crossroads of the shared fate of a number of nations. As it is known, we hold a ceremony for the Anzacs in Turkey every year.”
Istanbul’s exotic lifestyle, diverse settings and cosmopolitan population mean it has been used for filming for a wide range of films, including James Bond’s ‘From Russia with Love’ and ‘Skyfall’ – which also featured Turkey’s Aegean coast, and Oliver Stone’s ‘Midnight Express’.
