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Russell Crowe thinks his great friend, the late wildlife conservationist Steve Irwin, would be "so impressed" with his son Robert's performance on season 34 of Dancing With the Stars.
"I think he would watch Robert dancing and how he uses his body, the strength and poise, and he would be in awe of his son," the Nuremberg star recently shared.
Crowe first befriended Steve in the 1990s, and has remained close to the family since the outback legend's tragic death in 2006.
Russell Croweis proud of family friendRobert Irwin, and knows the wildlife conservationist's legendary dad,Steve Irwin, would be too.
Robert is currently at the head of the pack of contenders vying for theDancing With the Starsseason 34 Mirrorball trophy. Since the season began in September, the younger Irwin has continually blown the judges' and viewers' expectations out of the water with his technical prowess and seemingly unlimited enthusiasm. And expectations were already high — Robert's sister Bindi won the series' 21st season back in 2015.
Russell Crowe, a longtime friend of the Irwin family, has been carefully tracking Robert's journey from one of the hopeful 14 to the final five's contender to beat. Hetold theNew York Timesin a Sunday profile of Robert that he thinks the famed "crocodile hunter" would be "so impressed" with his son's performance so far.
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"Although Steve could read the rhythms of the seasons and every living creature, he was absolutely not gifted with a sense of musical rhythm," Crowe joked. "In his hands, a tambourine became a deadly weapon."
TheNurembergstar added, "I think he would watch Robert dancing and how he uses his body, the strength and poise, and he would be in awe of his son."
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Terri Irwin, Robert's mother and Steve's widow,recently explainedthe family's connection to their famous Aussie countryman, which took on new life after Steve's untimely death in 2006. "Russell was friends with Steve first, and then when Steve passed, he really took our family under his wing and looked after us, took care of us, and helped me with advice about my kids," she detailed.
Crowe has indeed remained the biggest supporter of the Irwin family's various endeavors, from Robert's management of the Australia Zoo to Terri, Bindi, and Robert's Animal Planet seriesCrikey! It's the Irwins.
Last month, as the competition heated to a boiling point onDWTSseason 34, Robert shared how meaningfulCrowe's guidance and adviceremains to him. "I'm incredibly grateful for his support on this dancing journey. It's actually been really cool because Russell will message after [each] performance," he explained. "He'll really delve into the detail of, 'Okay these steps were great, love the lines, love the clarity in the storytelling.' To really get that very in-depth feedback is amazing, and it means a lot."
TheDancing With the Starsfinale airs on Tuesday, Nov. 25 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+, and streams the next day on Hulu.
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