Robert Irwin found himself caught up in a cringey red carpet moment at the premiere of the new Russell Crowe blockbuster Nuremberg in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
The Wildlife Warrior, 21, who attended the movie with his mother Terri Irwin, was being interviewed on camera when the 61-year-old Gladiator star crept up behind him and smothered him with kisses.
‘Mate,’ Robert is seen saying in a TikTok video of the moment, laughing in good fun at the star’s over-the-top antics.
But it was footage of Terri and Russell at the same event that has lit up the internet.
Fans on the social media platform were keen to rekindle romance rumours between the high-profile pair, who reportedly have not seen each other in years after once being regular red carpet buddies.
‘You’re forgetting that Robert’s mom was Russell Crowe’s former girlfriend in Australia!’ joked one follower on the post.
Robert Irwin found himself caught up in a cringey red carpet moment at the premiere of the new Russell Crowe blockbuster Nuremberg in Los Angeles on Tuesday
But it was footage of Terri and Russell at the same event that has lit up the internet as fans on the social media platform were keen to rekindle romance rumours between the high-profile pair
‘That’s Uncle Crowe to you!’ joked another user, while a third viewer said: ‘Just besties with Russell Crowe… nothing to see here.’
A few followers appeared convinced that Terri, 61, and Russell were at one time a couple, but in 2021 Terri denied ever dating the Oscar winner.
In April this year, Terri told Stellar Magazine readers she was still happily single.
In the interview, she confessed that she has never seen the need to date another man since losing her husband Steve Irwin 19 years ago.
‘I’m sure there are a lot of lovely people out there in the world, but I did find my happily-ever-after, and I think I still have a lot of love in my life,’ she said.
Known as the Crocodile Hunter, Steve was tragically killed in 2006 when he was pierced by a stingray while filming a documentary.
Meanwhile, Terri and Russell were once considered best friends, with the Beautiful Mind star previously gushing over the conservationist as ‘one of the greatest women’ he’d ever met.
So close were the pair, they were forced to consistently shut down romance rumours after Steve’s passing.
‘You’re forgetting that Robert’s mom was Russell Crowe’s former girlfriend in Australia!’ joked one follower on the post
However, according to New Idea, the pair haven’t seen each other in around five years.
‘They would talk on the phone and text all the time, and Terri even considered him to be a father figure to Bindi and Robert after Steve died — so losing contact with him has been pretty tough for her,’ a source allegedly told the publication earlier this year.
According to the ‘insider’, Russell and Terri reportedly drifted apart around the same time he began dating his now-fiancée Britney Theriot.
‘There is only room for one woman in Rusty’s life,’ the source alleged.
The source added that Terri was happy for Russell when he found love with the blonde bombshell and could ‘see how smitten he was’.
And despite the pair growing apart, Terri knows Russell would be there in a heartbeat if she ever needed him.
‘Even if they didn’t speak for decades — that’s just the type of man he is,’ the source added.
