As one of the highest-grossing Australian movies of all time, there’s no doubt “Crocodile Dundee” is well-remembered by anyone who loves a 1980s classic. The success achieved by the movie starring Paul Hogan and Linda Kozlowski really defined the comedy and action genre at the time, leaving a cultural impact not easy to surpass.
With an entertaining but simple plot, funny characters and an amusing story, there’s no question as to why “Crocodile Dundee” was so loved by audiences all around the world. However, while some of its stars had prolific careers from then on, others were easy to lose track of.
So what’s up with the cast of “Crocodile Dundee” now that it’s been over three decades since its premiere? What other movies did they appear in, and who of them have unfortunately passed away? Keep with us to know it all!
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Where’s the Cast Of “Crocodile Dundee” Now?
Paul Hogan
Although Paul Hogan was a well-known name in his home country for series such as “The Paul Hogan Show”, his role as Mick Dundee in “Crocodile Dundee” definitely made him an internationally renowned star. A similar success followed him when he repeated his role of “Crocodile” for the movie’s sequels, but the rest of his professional endeavors weren’t as fruitful.
In the 1990s, Paul acted in as well as debuted as a producer and screenwriter in several movies including “Almost An Angel” and “Lighting Jack”, which unfortunately weren’t well received by critics and the box office. Nonetheless, not leaving the one-hit wonder title didn’t deter the love the general public has for Paul, so it wasn’t a surprise when in 2016 he became the recipient of a Longford Lyell Award, the most prestigious honor granted by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts.
Paul’s personal life is much more scandalous though. After a tumultuous divorce from his first wife Noelene Edwards, in 1990 he married his “Crocodile Dundee” co-star Linda Kozlowski, with whom he welcomed a son Chance, but they divorced in 2014. In 2003, Paul was accused of evading $A35 million in taxes, ensuing a legal battle which ended in 2010 when the Australian government dropped any charges against him.
Paul’s most recent project is the 2020’s online series “The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee”.
Linda Kozlowski
Unfortunately, Linda Kozlowski’s professional life hasn’t been very eventful in the last two decades. Although she received a Golden Globe Award Nomination as Best Supporting Actress for her character Sue Charlton, her following roles in movies such as “Backstreet Justice” and “Village The Damned” weren’t critically well received.
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In 2001 Linda co-starred in “Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles”, the latest installment of the movie saga, and her last role before finally retiring from acting. As she expressed in an interview with the Herald-Journal, her dissatisfaction with her latest roles added to her desire to entirely focus on having a child, and ultimately led her to leave her career without much of a regret: ‘I thought ‘this isn’t fun anymore. This is not what I studied, it’s not what I love’’.
Afterwards, Linda’s public appearances were few-and-far-between. In 2013 she filed for divorce from Paul Hogan, citing the reasons for their split as ‘irreconcilable differences’. Since then, Linda has been in a relationship with a Moroccan man named Moulay Hafid Baba, with whom she tied the knot in 2017.
John Meillon
He’s well remembered for playing the role of Walter Reilly in the two first installments of “Crocodile Dundee”. By then John Meillon already had over two decades of acting career, having appeared in dozens of series, movies and screenplays. He was also a notable voice actor, added to a moderately successful career as a singer.
After “Crocodile Dundee”, John appeared in movies such as “Frenchman’s Farm” and “The Everlasting Secret Family”. His last role was in the short-film “Tripe” released in 1989, shortly before his unfortunate death on 11 August that year at 55 years of age.
John’s health had been going downhill for at least a year before passing away – ‘he had become quiet and introspective’ his close friend Ben Spencer asserted. John, who was survived by two sons and wife Bunny Gibson, was rewarded with a posthumous Raymond Longford Lifetime Achievement Award in 1989 for contributing ‘substantially to the enrichment of Australian screen culture’.
David Gulpilil
David Gulpilil’s decades long career in the entertainment industry is certainly unforgettable. Prior to his role in “Crocodile Dundee” as Neville Bell, David was already recognized nation-wide for his work in the movies “Walkabout” and “The Last Wave”.
Following his appearances in the two installments of “Crocodile Dundee”, David acted in movies including the multi-awarded “The Tracker” in 2002, series such as “Beast Master”, and several documentaries out of which the auto-biographical “Gulpilil: One Red Blood” is especially notable.
Besides being a renowned actor, David’s career is as a traditional dancer, having won the dance competition Darwin Australia Day Eisteddfod five times. As well, he’s participated in several movements to argue for Australian aboriginal rights, and he became a mentor for Indigenous communities.
The multi-awarded David has received several recognitions for his decades-long work in the industry, including a Centenary Medal in 2001. He has also been awarded Best Actor by the Australian Film Institute and Cannes Film Festival.
Despite his brilliant career, David has had his fair share of legal issues, including charges for carrying a weapon and domestic abuse in 2007.
David retired from public life in 2019, after revealing that he was suffering from terminal lung cancer. A biographical documentary “My Name is Gulpilil” premiered in 2021, when he was also granted a Winston’s Walk of Fame Star.
David passed away from the effects of lung cancer on 29 November 2021.
Mark Blum
Although he only appeared in the first “Crocodile Dundee” movie playing the role of Richard Mason, Mark Blum built a prolific theater, TV and film acting career from then on. Out of the dozens of movies Mark was in, we can count “The Presidio”, “Shattered Glass” and “Human Capital”.
When it comes to television, his roles in series such as “Law and Order” and “Succession” were short-lived but memorable. His on-stage career includes roles in productions such as “Gus and Al”, and Broadway’s “Lost In Yonkers” in the 1990s. More recently, Mark is well-remembered for appearing in the multi-awarded “Mozart In The Jungle” series as Bob Union, added to this role as Mr. Mooney in the popular “You” in 2018.
Mark’s last roles were in the crime drama series “Tommy” and in the movie “Sister Of The Groom”, which was released months after his unfortunate death at 69 years old on 25 March 2020, resulting from complications related to COVID-19.
Michael Lombard
You might remember Michael Lombard for his role as Sam Charlton in the first “Crocodile Dundee” movie, but his career goes beyond that character. He was Irwin Goldman in the 1989 film adaptation of Stephen King’s book “Pet Sematary”, and then in 1997s’ horror movie “The Devil’s Advocate” as Judge Poe.
However, his most celebrated roles were definitely in off-Broadway plays such as the 1977’s “Otherwise Engaged” for which he was nominated for a Drama Desk Award, and in the 1991 production “What’s Wrong With This Picture?”, which won him an Obie Award.
From the start of his career in the 1950s to the 2000’s, Michael Lombard played dozens of roles in series of all genres, including “The Cosby Show” and “Law & Order”. Michael’s last role was in the French film “La Vraie Vie Des Profs”, premiered in 2013.
Michael unfortunately passed away on 13 August 2020 of unknown causes. He was honored by the Screen Actors Guild on their In Memoriam list.
Reginald VelJohnson
In “Crocodile Dundee”, Reginald VelJohnson is remembered for playing the memorable limo driver Gus, however, Reginald has several other roles to be proud of. Although he played minor roles in movies such as the Tom Hanks’ starred “Turner & Hooch”, his Hollywood breakthrough came with the first two “Die Hard” films, in which he played the role of Sgt. Al Powell.
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Reginald’s most popular role to date is definitely starring in the 1989 sitcom “Family Matters” as Carl Winslow, a police officer with a kind heart but strong character. The show ended after nine seasons, but Reginald continued appearing on TV regularly for years, in a variety of series as a guest star or as a narrator or voice actor. His latest recurring long-term acting work on TV was in the Disney’s series “I’m In The Band”, while his most recent project was voicing several characters in the animated series “Invincible”, released in 2021.
Despite being the victim of an online hoax which made Twitter users believe he’d died in 2017, Reginald is fortunately still alive and actively working on Hollywood productions.
Terry Gill
While Terry Gill’s role as Duffy in “Crocodile Dundee” might have won him worldwide recognition, the truth is that he was already a renowned star in Australia by then.
His career started in the sixties and extended for decades, gaining him lots of Aussie’s hearts for his portrayal of characters such as the detective Jack Grace in the series “Prisoner”.
Though he appeared in the movies “Jenny Kissed Me” and “Alvin Rides Again”, his most memorable roles were definitely on TV and in screenplays. His affiliation with the production company J.C. Williamsons took him touring many local Melbourne’s bars in a so-called “theatre fraternity” established by the company. Terry and his wife Carol-Ann Aylett founded a children’s club in Malvern which functioned for several years until their issues with a real estate agent resulted in its closure in 2014, an event documented in the film “Curtain Call”.
Terry and Carol-Ann eventually re-established their children’s theater, added to his seasonal appearances in the Christmas special “Carols By Candlelight” as Santa Claus , a role he portrayed for almost three decades.
Unfortunately, Terry died on 25 February 2015, less than a year after being diagnosed with lung cancer.
Steve Rackman
Known as Donk in the “Crocodile Dundee” movie-trilogy, Steve Rackman wasn’t an actor initially. He was a wrestler by profession, having won the Australian-Asian Tag Team Championship in 1975.
Steve’s bulky complexion made him fitting for roles of a strongman, appearing in at least 40 movies and Australian TV series from the 1970s to the 2000s. His most memorable roles are as Devastator in “Outback Bound”, and Samchin Jugger in “The Blood Of Heroes”.
While his career in the entertainment world was thriving, Steve established the company Main Events Productions, focused on organizing events and clubs of wrestling.
Steve’s last role was in the third “Crocodile Dundee” movie premiered in 2001, disappearing from public life shortly afterwards. The last time we got an update on his whereabouts was in 2003, when in an interview with the magazine Australian Sports Entertainment, Steve revealed he had founded a gym in Sydney’s Coogee Beach.
Gerry Skilton
Although Gerry Skilton had already appeared in the mini-series “The Cowra Breakout” in 1984, his breakthrough took place in “Crocodile Dundee” with his portrayal of the memorable Nugget for the three movies of the saga. In the following two decades, Gerry acted in dozens of films, TV movies and series, including productions such as “Outback Bound”, “A Country Practice” and “My Entire Life”.
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Nonetheless, Gerry couldn’t shake the image of Nugget from his career. That’s why in 2010 he was granted permission by Paul Hogan to create “Nugget Gets A Life”, a self-financed series he created to not only explore Nugget’s character in depth, but to go into detail about the life of mining during the late 1800s in Clermont, Australia.
Besides getting the approval of Clermont’s authorities for the project due to its supposed touristic benefits for the area, Gerry also sensed that it was a good chance to further his creativity: ‘I don’t know whether it’s a great or a bad thing, but since completing Dundee I’ve never been able to drop the handle Nugget because people just won’t let me’, he told the Courier Mail.
Unfortunately, Gerry’s project was apparently never taken by a production company or network. Since 2010, Gerry has disappeared from public life.
What Happened To “Crocodile Dundee”s Franchise?
Knowing how acclaimed “Crocodile Dundee” was, there’s no wonder why Paul Hogan converted it into a movie saga. In its first installment, “Crocodile Dundee” collected $328 million at the box office worldwide, an impressive feat considering its budget was $8 million, raised with the assistance of the Australian government through a tax concession program.
The film series was continued by a sequel premiered in 1988, which despite not surpassing the first movie, impressively collected $239 million at the box office. The third and last sequel entitled “Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles” released in 2001 didn’t achieve its predecessors’ success, grossing only $39 million.
While a continuation of the movie-series seems unlikely for now considering the circumstances, there’s no way such a classic will stay untouched for long. Fans of “Crocodile Dundee” only need to wait for it!
