Meg Ryan was so upset by the way America turned on her during her 2000 romance with Proof Of Life co-star Russell Crowe she needed to take a break from Hollywood to recover.

The actress had long been considered America’s sweetheart until the break-up of her marriage to Dennis Quaid and her fling with Crowe turned her into public enemy number one - and she struggled to cope with the backlash.

She tells Parade magazine, “It’s a very big surprise in life when you learn that not everyone is rooting for you. It’s a very scary thing when you figure that out. I never imagined that worrying about what other people think of me would be a big part of my day. But, when you get that much negativity thrown at you, you go, ‘Whew, I’ve got to cope with that.’ Nothing I heard in the press resembled the truth. What an insight for me. I took time off. I wanted to get simple and quiet. I wanted to laugh. I wanted to travel.”

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WENN

Production on Russell Crowe’s upcoming Nottingham film has been postponed because of fears the leaves in Sherwood Forest will be the wrong color.

The Ridley Scott movie will see Crowe playing the Sheriff of Nottingham and Sienna Miller taking on the role of Maid Marion in a new take of the famous Robin Hood tale.

But filming has been delayed with movie bosses citing the threat of an actors’ strike this summer and “location problems” for the move.

And it has been revealed that a major factor in the decision to move the shoot back until next year is that the leaves in the original area of woodland where the Robin Hood legend was born would have turned brown by the end of filming.

A source tells British newspaper the Daily Express, “The thing about the leaves is absolutely true. It may sound silly but Sherwood Forest needs to be green - it’s central to the plot. They could have filmed in the autumn, but the post-production team would have had to retouch every leaf and that alone would have blown the budget.”

The movie is now slated for a November 2009 release.

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WENN

Russell Crowe has a business lunch with Peter Holmes à Court, his joint owner in the National Rugby League team, the South Sydney Rabbitohs, before walking back to his apartment on the Sydney Harbour waterfront.

WENN

These are the sweetest pictures!  He looks like such a good dad!

Russell has two sons Charles “Charlie” Spencer, born 12/21/03, and Tennyson Spencer, born 7/6/06.

WENN

Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe are Hollywood’s Most Overpaid Celebrities.

The “American Gangster” actor topped the new list compiled by Forbes magazine, who compared stars’ salaries to the gross income made by the film. While “Gladiator” cost $100 million to make, and made $460 million gross income, Russell’s recent films, which include “Cinderella Man” and “A Good Year,” have flopped at the box office - averaging $5 of gross income for each dollar he was paid. American Gangster” might help Russell’s bankability - it has already made $173 million worldwide, nearly double the $100 million it cost to make.

Nicole Kidman came second in the list after earning a reported $15 million for her most recent blockbuster “The Golden Compass” - which made only $26 million in its debut weekend in the US, compared to the $200 million it allegedly cost to make. These figures mean Nicole’s films return $8 on average to the studios, while Angelina Jolie - who is paid less than Nicole - grosses $15 on average.

Comedians Jim Carrey and Will Ferrell came in third and fourth positions.

Jim is taking a huge risk on his next film “Yes Man” - he is not being paid anything upfront and will only get paid if the film makes money.

“The Wedding Planner” actress Jennifer Lopez rounded off the top five. The mother-to-be is quickly becoming known for her box office flops, with her film “Gigli” not even taking as much as it cost to make.

Adam Sandler, Cameron Diaz, Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Tom Cruise also featured in the embarrassing list.

Forbes magazine’s Most Overpaid Celebrities:
1. Russell Crowe
2. Nicole Kidman
3. Jim Carrey
4. Will Ferrell
5. Jennifer Lopez
6. Adam Sandler
7. Cameron Diaz
8. Denzel Washington
9. Will Smith
10. Tom Cruise

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For a guy who hates those bloody tabloid rags, Russell Crowe gives great gossip.

“You know, I worked with Leonardo [DiCaprio] when he was 17,” Crowe recalls. “He was a virgin and he’d talk about that constantly.”

Of course, Leo has made up for lost time - what with his conquests of supermodels Gisele Bundchen and Bar Rafaeli, among others. So Crowe is looking forward to debriefing the lothario on their upcoming “Body of Lies.”

“I’m hoping … he can fill [me] in on what’s happened in between, maybe show some photos,” Crowe laughs in Entertainment Weekly. “I’m sure life’s different now.”

Crowe admits his tongue sometimes gets away from him.

“I said something to Spike [Lee] one night, and he’s never been the same to me since,” he says. “He was trying to get me to play [German boxer] Max Schmeling in the Joe Louis story. If I was in it, he’d get this $100 million financing. But it’s just a secondary role. And I said to him, “I want to be Joe Louis. I want to be Muhammad Ali. If you want to work with me, let me be Joe Louis. … I think he took it the wrong way. … I don’t get any more birthday cards from him.”

Crowe also has turned down a few superhero roles. “What do you get with a superhero role?” asks Crowe. “You get a Spandex costume, and every now and then, a cape.”

The Oscar winner, who talks to EW with Denzel Washington, remembers meeting his “American Gangster” co-star 12 years ago, on the set of “Virtuosity.”

“We had to do a scene where there’s a piece of cyclone wire fencing between us,” says Crowe. “I had to be really rabid and weird, and … a bit of spit comes out of my mouth … and it weaves itself neatly through the fencing and lands right on Denzel’s lip. … And I’m going, Oh man … I’m doing my audition, and I spit on Denzel Washington. I might as well just go home and hang myself right now. … He just kept on doing the scene, and at the end, they said ‘cut,’ and he’s looking at me and the spit’s still sitting there and he goes, ‘I love the taste of warm saliva in the morning.’?”

Um, okay?

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