Russell Crowe comes to Turkey to shoot his directorial debut movie on Gallipoli battle

ISTANBUL – Anadolu Agency

‘The Water Diviner’ is Russell Crowe’s directoral debut. He also stars in the film along with two Turkish actors.

Following shootings in Australia, the Turkish scenes of actor Russell Crowe’s directorial debut, “The Water Diviner,” will begin shooting on Feb. 26. 

The Istanbul shootings will take place in the Sultanahmet, Çemberlitaş and Balat neighborhoods, as well as at Topkapı Palace. The crew will remain in Istanbul until March, before going to the deserted Kayaköy village in the Aegean district of Fethiye to continue shootings. 

“The Water Diviner” is based on a screenplay by Andrew Knight and Andrew Anastasios. The story focuses on a father from New Zealand-born Crowe’s adopted homeland of Australia who travels to Turkey in 1919. There, he hopes to discover what has happened to his two sons, both of whom have gone missing following the battle for Gallipoli.

Besides Crowe, the film stars Olga Kurylenko, Jai Courtney and Turkish actors Cem Yılmaz and Yılmaz Erdoğan.