In Cannes, Russell Crowe mocks method acting

CANNES, France – Russell Crowe has an uncomplicated approach to acting: “The Russell Crowe Method,” he calls it.

That’s what the actor said at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday before the premiere of his 1970s detective comedy “The Nice Guys.” Asked about his process, Crowe bluntly explained that he’s proudly unschooled in drama, though he’s been acting since he was six years old.

“Over time you get more and more efficient at getting to the centre of the character you’re portraying. I don’t even know what the Stanislavski method may be,” Crowe told reporters, adding: “And I don’t care to know.”

“It’s not complicated,” summarized the 52-year-old Oscar-winning actor. “If you want to be an actor, work it out yourself.”

Crowe then misidentified an old Spencer Tracy quote: “Learn your dialogue and don’t bump into the furniture.”

Written and directed by Shane Black, “The Nice Guys” premiered Sunday in Cannes. Crowe stars alongside Ryan Gosling, and both were happy to deflect questions of finding “chemistry” together.

Gosling maintained it’s a new setting on digital cameras: “They just do it in post,” he said.