StadeFrance Live Events and ANZ Stadium are thrilled to announce that Australian icon RUSSELL CROWE has agreed to be the Narrator of BEN HUR – the Stadium Spectacular at the ANZ Stadium on 22 and 23 October.

An internationally acclaimed star of film and stage, Russell Crowe is the winner of an Oscar for Gladiator at the 2000 Academy Awards, and countless accolades including a Golden Globe Award, Film Critics Circle Award, Australian Film Institute and Screen Actors Guild Award.

Russell Crowe will lend his voice and iconic stature to the biggest theatrical event ever seen in Australia. The monumental $15 million production is set for two shows only, exclusively in Sydney.

Russell Crowe said “We all know the Australian saying, "Bigger than Ben Hur" and there is no doubt this show will be massive. It is an honour to be asked to participate, it's going to be fun, that's for sure, and I'm really looking forward to it. There's a cast of 200, Chariot races, Pirate attacks. It's huge."

"Obviously I have a relationship with ANZ Stadium, being that it is the home ground of The Rabbitohs. I've long been an admirer of the cutting edge approach that the Stadium has taken in its operations. This idea is so ambitious, the scale so daunting that when they asked me to be involved I just said absolutely."

"This isn't a play, it's not a musical, it’s a spectacle. When I was approached I put the question up on Twitter, "Did anyone see the Paris production?" and the responses that I read confirmed for me that the people who are lucky enough to see this will have an unforgettable, once in a lifetime experience.”

ANZ Stadium Managing Director Daryl Kerry has hailed the signing of Russell Crowe as “a stellar moment in major event theatre worldwide”.