Crowe's Cinderella delayed

The release of Russell Crowe's new boxing film, "The Cinderella Man", has been pushed back three months by Universal Pictures.

16:52 12 March 2004

The release of Russell Crowe's new boxing film, "The Cinderella Man", has been pushed back three months by Universal Pictures.

The film is set in the Great Depression, and follows the career of a 1930s champion boxer, named Jim Braddock. It will also star Renee Zellwegger.

"The Cinderella Man" also sees Crowe work with director Ron Howard for the first time since the Oscar-winning "A Beautiful Mind".

Sources inside the studio say the decision means production will now begin in April. The delay comes after a shoulder injury sustained by Crowe during training.

A spokesman for the studio pointed out that the delay was not triggered by Crowe's injury, rather a desire to fit the right campaign for a film trying for a 2006 Oscar. The movie's original December release date was seen as key to its 2005 Oscar campaign.