Paul Hogan on being confused with his iconic ‘Crocodile Dundee’ character
Paul Hogan has made three Crocodile Dundee movies over the course of his 50-year showbiz career, and to varying degrees of success. The first, 1986’s Crocodile Dundee — the comedy that introduced his knife-wielding, wise-cracking Australian Outbacker in New York, Mick Dundee — was a bona fide global phenomenon, and one of the most successful independent films of all time. The second, 1988’s Crocodile Dundee II, wasn’t quite the sensation, but still earned Hogan and mates a few bucks. The third, 2001’s Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles was, well, better left not spoken much about.
Still, though, in a business that never tires of IP with a history of lining pockets, Hogan has been entertaining offers for another Dundee movie ever since. There was talk of a Beverly Hills Cop–Crocodile Dundee crossover. Rumors that Aussie heartthrob Chris Hemsworth would reboot the franchise as Son of Dundee. And most recently, a fake trailer for the Danny McBride-starring Dundee: The Son of Legend Returns that fooled the internet before it was revealed to be a $27 million ad campaign for Australia tourism.
Hogan’s phone really started ringing after the trailer fake-out went viral and aired with more context during the 2018 Super Bowl, and it ultimately lead to the new comedy The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee — which, no, does not find Hogan reprising his snake-and-Linda Kozlowski-charming role, but should still be eaten up by old-school Dundee enthusiasts nonetheless. Hogan reteams with Dean Murphy, who directed his only two films since Dundee went to La La Land (2004’s Strange Bedfellows and 2009’s Charlie and Boots), to play a heightened version of himself: He’s an aging actor still best known (and often confused for) his iconic screen alter ego, and who finds himself in one embarrassing, highly publicized kerfuffle after another in the lead-up to receiving knighthood from the Queen of England.
In a rare interview, the candid and self-deprecating Hogan, now 81, tells Yahoo Entertainment about why he came out of retirement for his new film, all those other attempts at reviving the franchise and the surprising famous celebrities who’ve quoted back his famous “knife” life to him.
Yahoo Entertainment: What can you tell us about the origins of The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee? Did it launch in any way from the success of that tourism ad?
Paul Hogan: Yeah, that was partly it, because the Super Bowl commercial brought Mick Dundee back to life. And the offers started coming out of the woodwork, most of them bad, to do another Dundee movie. You know, I’m getting a bit long in the tooth. And Murphy decided he’d write [this] one based on what he knew, and loosely on my life, and as a comment also on social media and rumors and gossip. The movie was originally called No Good Deed Goes Unpunished.
At one point in the film you say that you’ve been trying to retire for the past 20 years. Is that true, and why did you decide to return for this one?
Well, I had to do it in the end because it was based on some of my stories and some of my life, and I liked the idea of a mixed, funny sort of cast, and I just liked the script. He thinks a lot like I do, Dean Murphy, he has a lovely, dry, subtle sense of humor. He doesn’t do pie-in-the-face-type stuff. And so he’s dragged me out of retirement several times.
The role is incredibly self-deprecating. You’re called an “ex-movie star” and “former Australian legend,” among other put-downs. Do you have to approve those? Is Murphy getting nervous showing you lines like that?
No, he doesn’t. He knows I don’t have a very high opinion of myself, so he doesn’t worry about it. Often the point of the film is “Don’t get carried away with yourself.” You can get sort of tapped down to size by social media or false rumors or misunderstandings. We share that in the movie.
In the film’s opening scene there’s a teacher and some schoolchildren who think you’re actually Mick Dundee. They address you as “Mr. Dundee,” and they ask you to help clear a snake out of the hiking path. Does that happen a lot, where people see you as interchangeable with this character?
Oh yeah. The tourism people did research in 10 different countries and among the questions asked are “Who do you know from Australia?” or about famous Australians, and eight out of ten of them said “Mick Dundee.” But none of them said me. It was really funny.
Have you been called Mr. Dundee a lot in real life?
Oh, God yeah. Not as much in America but in different countries that I’ve been in. It happened in Mexico, it happened in Japan, in Singapore. I’ll walk into a hotel, “Oh, Mr. Dundee, welcome.” I’ll think, “Well, I must’ve made a convincing character, ‘cause he’s still famous and I’m not.”
The opening of the movie, with the snake, that was loosely based on a true incident. I was hiking in Franklin Canyon [in Los Angeles] and two ladies came panting and rushing around the bend from the bush. One of them looked up and said, “Oh, thank God it’s you.” I said, “What?” She said to the other, “It’s Crocodile Dundee.” And before I could explain I’m not really him, she said, “We’re so lucky you’re here, because just around the bend is the biggest rattlesnake I’ve ever seen, just lying on the path. Thank God you’re here to take care of it.” I couldn’t argue with them or explain anything. I just said, “I’ll have a look.” So I walked around to where they said it was and it had crawled off, it had gone.
That’s amazing. Just so we can clear this up for folks, what would you say are the sharpest differences between you and Mick Dundee? Besides the fact that you’ve never been a crocodile hunter.
Yeah, that was a fictitious character. He had my sense of humor and my attitude towards life, but he’s not me. But that was it, I became typecast, which didn’t bother me in the least because I never thought of myself as a movie actor for hire, anyway. I was a comedy writer who was lucky enough to do my stuff on screen. And because of the ridiculous success of Dundee, which is still the most successful independent film ever made, it’s sort of like, “Oh, whatever I do next will be a flop by comparison. So why bother?”
I remember there being rumors at one point that Chris Hemsworth was going to reboot Crocodile Dundee. Did that ever come your way or involve you?
There were a few suggestions for that. Chris Hemsworth as my son, Margot Robbie as my daughter, which is a fairly beautiful pair of kids.
Was that ever close to a reality or did that never make it past the pitch phase?
For a couple of them there were outlines that I got from different studios. They weren’t that bad, but it just didn’t grab me. Sort of flogging a dead horse, I thought.
This one dates a little bit further back, but I think they also explored a Beverly Hills Cop–Crocodile Dundee crossover at some point?
Oh yeah, I remember that. That was floated around for a while, back in the early ‘90s. That never ever came to anything. But that might’ve been a funny mixture.
Did you ever talk to Eddie Murphy about it?
No, no, no. I only met Eddie once, very briefly, when we both flew down to Vegas in the Paramount jet. We went down there for a promotional thing with Eddie Murphy and John Travolta and Tom Cruise. They were my flying companions. Their careers all blossomed after that. Mine didn’t, but I didn’t care. [Laughs.] I was old enough to be Tom’s dad.
A fake news segment at the beginning of your new movie describes you “almost overnight disappearing from American screens.” You seem to have such a great attitude about your own popularity and role in pop culture, and like you said, it would’ve been nearly impossible to top the initial success you had with that first movie, but still, was that a distressing period in your life when the bluster did start to fade here?
No, no, not in the least. It was my first go at a movie and there was a first-time director and producer [and me as a] writer and lead. The whole thing was, “Let’s have a go, we’ll make a little movie, it should work in Australia.” And then to have it be number one in Lithuania and Sweden and Israel and Lebanon, it was over the top. I’ve always said it was like going to the Olympics and rolling up your jeans and saying, “Can I have a run in the 100?” And then winning the gold medal. It was that unlikely. So mentally I sort of retired after the first one.
That’s an incredible analogy. Obviously there’s one scene from that first film that is most oft-quoted. What do you remember about filming the “That’s not a knife” scene?
Oh I wrote it and I thought it was amusing. I didn’t know it would go into the language like it did. It’s been quoted at me thousands and thousands of times, by all sorts of people, including our Prince Charles and Clint Eastwood, among many.
Do you think we’ll see you act again or are you going back into retirement?
Oh, I’m always open to something that I think is fun, but not really. I don’t care. I did, I mentally retired after Dundee. I only did this movie ‘cause I had to, and that was my mate who put it together. And I thought it’d be fun to work with these other veterans.
The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee, which costars John Cleese, Chevy Chase, Olivia Newton-John, Reginald VelJohnson and Wayne Knight, opens Friday, Dec. 11.
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