Australia election 2022: Russell Crowe backs Anthony Albanese for PM

Russell Crowe makes a surprise appearance in the election campaign cutting a dramatic ad for Anthony Albanese – but viewers spot an embarrassing problem

  • Russell Crowe has voiced a Labor campaign advert three weeks from election 
  • The Gladiator star says: ‘Your vote is powerful. Your vote can change things’  
  • Some of the footage in advert was revealed to be stock clips filmed overseas 

A Labor campaign advert narrated by Hollywood superstar Russell Crowe uses foreign stock images filmed overseas. 

The minute-long clip voiced by the Gladiator actor shows Mr Albanese meeting Aussies on the campaign trail as well as stock footage of senior Australians and a farmer in a field of wheat.

The advert talks about Labor’s plan to do better for Australians – but eagle-eyed viewers spotted some of the clips were from other countries which Labor simply bought from the internet rather than filming in Australia.

Russell Crowe (pictured with girlfriend Britney Theriot) has thrown his support behind Anthony Albanese by voicing an advert for the Labor leader just three weeks out from the election

The image of an elderly woman used in the advert is listed on stock image company Shutterstock under the title 'Portrait of an old lonely human who looks out the window from the window sheds light'

The image of an elderly woman used in the advert is listed on stock image company Shutterstock under the title ‘Portrait of an old lonely human who looks out the window from the window sheds light’

These include an elderly lady filmed in the US, a man in a wheelchair filmed in Canada, and a farmer walking through fields of wheat which appears to be from Slovenia. 

The clip of the farmer and the man in a wheelchair are available to buy from New York based stock image company Pond5.

An image of an elderly woman is listed on stock image company Shutterstock under the title ‘Portrait of an old lonely human who looks out the window from the window sheds light’.  

Crowe – who is a part-owner of Mr Albanese’s boyhood NRL team South Sydney Rabbitohs – speaks over the images as they flash up on screen. 

‘We can do better. All it takes is a better government with better plans,’ he says.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Labor for comment. 

The advert was played at Mr Albanese’s official campaign launch in Perth on Sunday.

The Labor leader is six points ahead of Scott Morrison in the polls and is on track on form Government – should the polls mirror the actual election results. 

Mr Albanese also used his Perth speech address to officially unveil the party’s new housing equity scheme.

This clip of a farmer featured in the advert. It is available to buy from New York based stock image company Pond5 under the title A Medium Stabilized Shot Of An Older Farmer Walking Down The Wheat Fields. The contributor is from Slovenia

This clip of a farmer featured in the advert. It is available to buy from New York based stock image company Pond5 under the title A Medium Stabilized Shot Of An Older Farmer Walking Down The Wheat Fields. The contributor is from Slovenia

A screengrab of the Pond5 website shows the exact clip Labor used available to buy online

A screengrab of the Pond5 website shows the exact clip Labor used available to buy online

This clip of a man in wheelchair appeared to have been filmed in Canada, eagle-eyed viewers noted. It is available to buy from New York based stock image company Pond5 under the title Old Man In Wheel Chair At Retirement Home. The contributor is from Canada

This clip of a man in wheelchair appeared to have been filmed in Canada, eagle-eyed viewers noted. It is available to buy from New York based stock image company Pond5 under the title Old Man In Wheel Chair At Retirement Home. The contributor is from Canada

The Help to Buy scheme will provide an equity contribution of as much as 40 per cent of the purchase price of a new home and up to 30 per cent for an existing dwelling for 10,000 Australians.

Coalition Housing Minister Michael Sukkar said barely anyone would take up the offer because they don’t want ‘Anthony Albanese sitting at their kitchen table and owning part of their home’. 

Mr Albanese also pledged to build more electric vehicle charging stations with $40million funding matched by the NRMA – as well as a hydrogen refuelling network on 16 busy freight routes. 

Meanwhile, Mr Morrison has pledged an extra 50,000 older Australians will get access to the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card if he is re-elected.

The PM is set to announce an increase in the singles income test threshold – from $57,761 to around $90,000 – from July 1 this year to broaden access to the concession card.

The couples threshold will also increase from $92,416 to $144,000. 

What does Russell Crowe say in the Albanese advert? 

‘We can do better. All it takes is a better government with better plans. 

‘Too many people are working multiple jobs just to keep their heads above water.

‘We can do better than that.

‘Too many of our kids aren’t gonna be able to buy a house. We can do better than that.

‘Too many people in regional Australia can’t get basic healthcare. We can do better than that.

‘And our elderly are being mistreated every day in a broken aged care system. We can do so much better than that.

‘We have to. Your vote is powerful. Your vote can change things. Your vote can change Australia for the better.’