Russell Crowe reveals Gladiator guilt

Russell Crowe felt guilty about the attention surrounding him following the success of Gladiator.

The actor received a best actor Oscar in 2001 for his role in the historical drama, but felt it was unfair for him to receive the lion’s share of public praise.

Russell, who played Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius in the film, admits his feelings overshadowed the accolades as he believed director Ridley Scott deserved more recognition.

"It is a director's film...,” Russell explained during an interview on Australian show Today. “Why did I get all the attention, when the Academy Award belongs to Ridley Scott?'"

The 56-year-old says the guilt set in again when he recently watched a screening of the 2000 movie at the Colosseum in Rome.

"(After starring in Gladiator), I got so many pats on the back, and, you know, I got some big awards and all that, and obviously that sort of stepped me up to a different level for quite some time," he said.

In Gladiator, Russell’s high-ranking Roman general character was forced into slavery before seeking revenge against the corrupt emperor who killed his family.

The actor recently admitted he almost turned down the iconic role because he wasn’t impressed with the initial script.

"It was just so bad," he laughed during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. "The producer didn’t know I’d actually already been able to get a copy, but the thing he said was, 'I don’t want to send you the document we have because you won’t respond to it, but I want to encourage you to have a meeting with Ridley Scott and here’s the thing that I want you to think about: it’s 180 AD, you’re a Roman general and you’re being directed by Ridley Scott. Just think about that.'"