Russell Crowe rides the Bra Boys wave

Russell Crowe is well known for starring in physical, muscular films about super-human yet vulnerable heroes. So it’s no wonder that for his directorial debut, he’s plunged his designer boots into similar terrain.

After narrating Bra Boys, the acclaimed documentary about the infamous Maroubra gang founded by Abberton Brothers—Sunny, Koby and Jai—Crowe decided to make a follow-on drama much as Lords of Dogtown followed on from the 2001 documentary, Dogtown and Z-boys.

The Bra Boys began as an underground surf movement only to wipe out on the waves of scandal with bloody street brawls and murder charges for two of the brothers, all amidst a search for Australia’s biggest wave. Koby is a world champion surfer.

Barely escaping a horrendous childhood, the Abbertons founded the Bra Boys to clean heroin off the streets of Maroubra, which they have been more or less successful in doing. They’ve gone on to channel thousands of surfing prize dollars to charities like Streets to the Beach which helps streets kids get into something more constructive like surfing.

“Maroubra Beach is a mum and dad to thousands of kids,” says Koby in a must-read exclusive at Surfer Magazine online.

Having Crowe narrating the original documentary which was written and directed by Sunny Abberton was a major score, and in the aftermath of Koby’s recent acquittal for hindering police investigations, the star clocked in some serious drinking time with the boys.

According to Koby:

“Mate, he’s just like one of the boys. He’s risking big money and his reputation hanging out with us. He’s one of those people who can walk into any conversation and be comfortable with it. He can just deal with it. He comes down to the pub with me on a Friday and there’s 50 of the boys in there going mad and he just sat there sucking schooners with us, being one of the boys.”

Penned by Collateral writer Stuart Beattie, with Brian Grazer producing, the new drama from Universal will be a fictional adaptation of both the documentary and an upcoming book about the Brahs. Stars are yet to be announced.

http://www.surfermag.com/features/onlineexclusives/kobyabbertonprofile/