Russell Crowe to return to Irish shores for film premiere

Russell Crowe is set to return to Irish shores next month — just in time for St Patrick’s Day.

The Jameson Dublin International Film Festival has confirmed that the Oscar-winning actor will appear at the festival for the premiere of The Water Diviner, his directorial debut.

Crowe had floated the idea on Twitter earlier.

Ahem..I'd like to address the good people of Dublin. How about I screen #TheWaterDiviner on March 20th at the Savoy ? Q & A after? Thoughts?

— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) February 10, 2015

The premiere, the film festival confirmed, will indeed take place at the Savoy on March 20.

Former Sex and the City star Kim Cattrall will also be appearing at the festival to screen episodes of her new Sky Arts TV series Sensitive Skin. She will also participate in an elite master class at The Lir National Academy of Dramatic Art.

Festival director Grainne Humphreys said: “An accomplished performer on both stage and screen, Kim Cattrall moves effortlessly between drama and comedy, with roles ranging from Cleopatra on stage to her acclaimed portrayal of Samantha in Sex and the City to her big screen work with filmmakers such as John Boorman and Roman Polanski.”

The Water Diviner, meanwhile, marks Crowe’s directorial debut and has garnered substantial acclaim from critics across the globe. The film tells the story of an Australian farmer who goes to Turkey after the Battle of Gallipoli in the First World War to search for his three missing sons.

When it opened in Australia, it raked in Au$5.68m (€4.38m) in just six days.

The film, which also stars Olga Kurylenko, also did well in Turkey. It is set for general release in Ireland and the UK in April.

The last time Crowe held a film premiere in Dublin, he was embroiled in a well-publicised row with an Irish journalist from Evoke.ie.

Crowe was on the red carpet promoting new flick Noah when he took umbrage to remarks from a reporter who asked if he would consider bringing his rugby team to Ireland to play against the Irish team.

He later took to Twitter to publically label the writer a “plonker”.