Where George of the Jungle cast are now – unrecognisable transformation, 32-year age gap romance and Friends star’s dad
IT'S been 25 years since we all sang along to the incredibly catchy soundtrack of George of the Jungle.
The film about a hunky outsider who was raised by animals became an instant hit upon release and made a whopping $174million.
Based on the 1960s animated series of the same name, the flick turned actors such as Brendan Fraser, Leslie Mann, and Thomas Haden Church into households names.
This week, after shunning the spotlight following personal struggles, Brendan made an emotional comeback at the Venice Film Festival.
His performance in new movie The Whale has been met with critical acclaim, with industry insiders predicting a future Oscar nomination.
After Brendan's return to the limelight, we take a look at what happened to him and his George of the Jungle co-stars after the film's success.
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Brendan Fraser
Playing the lead in George of the Jungle gave Brendan, 53, his first taste of box office success.
He had even bigger victories when he starred in the horror adventure trilogy The Mummy from 1999.
The movies took a huge toll on him physically as he had to undergo several surgeries due to the stunt work he did.
He told GQ in 2018 he had a laminectomy to remove a vertebrae from his spine, a partial knee replacement and a repair on his vocal chord.
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Brendan also said he believed he had been blackballed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, who organise the Golden Globes, after he accused its former president Philip Berk of sexual assault.
Describing the alleged incident, he said: "His left hand reaches around, grabs my a** cheek, and one of his fingers touches me in the taint. And he starts moving it around."
He claimed that he was hardly invited to the Golden Globes afterwards, and fell into depression, resulting in his retreat from showbiz.
His marriage to his ex wife, Afton Smith, also fell apart in 2007 and he was ordered to pay $50,000 a month for a period of 10 years as part of the divorce settlement.
While promoting a film in 2016, fans were alarmed when he appeared disconnected in an interview, which he said was because of the death of his mother a few days prior.
His dramatic transformation over the years due to health reasons also became cause for concern.
But he has now found love again with Jeanne Moore and was filmed wiping away a tear after receiving a six-minute standing ovation for The Whale.
Leslie Mann
The San Francisco native played Ursula Stanhope, a rich heiress and George's love interest in the film.
Since then, Leslie, 50, has established herself as one of Hollywood's biggest comedy actresses, with roles in movies such as Knocked Up, 17 Again, and This Is 40.
In 1997, she married film executive Judd Apatow, who she met a year prior while auditioning for the film, The Cable Guy.
Judd, 54, has produced films such as The 40-year-old Virgin and Bridesmaids, as well many of Leslie's movies.
The couple share two daughters - Maude, 24, and Iris, 19, who are also actors.
Thomas Haden Church
In the film, Thomas was the rich Lyle van de Groot, Ursula's overbearing former fiancé.
He gained universal acclaim and an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Jack Cole in the 2004 comedy drama Sideways.
For his audition, he stripped naked to deliver his lines and later found out he was the only actor who had chosen to do so.
Since then, he has appeared in Hellboy and Spider-Man: No Way Home and the TV show Divorce, where he played Sarah Jessica Parker's husband.
Thomas has two children from a previous relationship with Mia Zotolli.
In 2018, he waded into the topic of diversity in Hollywood when he said he has always preferred working with women.
He said in an interview: "If everybody you work with is a dude, you just get into macho bulls--t. "
Holland Taylor
The Emmy award winning actress, 79, has been in the industry for nearly 60 years and shows no signs of slowing down.
Already a well established actor before George of the Jungle, Holland played the role of Beatrice Stanhope, Ursula's controlling mother.
In 2015, she made headlines when she revealed in a radio interview that she was dating a much younger woman and that most of her relationships had been with women.
Media reports named actress Sarah Paulson as her partner, which was confirmed months later by the American Horror Story actress.
The couple, who have a 32-year-age gap, have now made numerous red carpet appearances together.
John Bennett Perry
John, 81, who played Arthur in the film is the father of Friends star Matthew Perry.
His career began in 1975 with the movie Lipstick and as a model in the Old Spice commercials in the 70s and 80s.
After George of the Jungle, he appeared in films such as Fools Rush In with Matthew and Scrubs.
He even had a brief role in Friends, where he played the father of Rachel Green's boyfriend Joshua.
He has been married twice - his first wife and Matthew's mother is Suzanne Langford, who was the press secretary of former Canadian PM Pierre Trudeau.
Kelly Miracco
Before the film, Kelly was known for starring in Hard Time On Planet Earth and The Larry Sanders Show.
She appears to have stepped away from the limelight since playing Betsy, Ursula's best friend.
Kelly has had very minor roles in shows such as Frasier and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Richard Roundtree
The 80-year-old actor was already a huge star before playing Kwame in George of the Jungle.
Richard, who is a former model, is best known for his role as private detective John Shaft in the Shaft movie franchise between 1972 and 2019.
He also appeared in What Men Want and the 2020 horror thriller Haunting of the Mary Celeste.
In 1993, he was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to undergo a double mastectomy and chemotherapy.
He has been married twice and has five children. He famously dated TV personality Cathy Lee Crosby shortly after his first marriage ended.
Greg Cruttwell
This was the 62-year-old British actor's last acting role, where he played a villainous poacher called Max .
He quit acting and became the founder of Balham Blazers Football Club in 2001.
In 2011, they were named the South East England Charter Standard Community Club of the Year.
He is the president of Balham F.C. and was awarded the London FA Award for Outstanding Contribution To Football In The Community.
Greg's parents were actress Geraldine McEwan and Hugh Crutwell, who was an influential drama teacher.
Abraham Benrubi
After playing a poacher in the movie, Abraham found greater success portraying Jerry Markovic on ER and Larry Kubiac on Parker Lewis Can't Lose.
Born in Indianapolis, he is also known for his voice acting and has voiced several video games including the World of Warcraft series.
He is married to Christina Ferreira, but otherwise appears happy to keep his life away from the spotlight.
Crystal
The capuchin monkey, 28, has been in the industry since 1997 and has starred in many movies and TV shows.
Her most memorable roles after George of the Jungle include The Hangover Part II, where she was the drug dealing monkey and as Dexter in the Night at the Museum franchise.
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Owned by Tom Gunderson, she is one of the most successful animal actors in Hollywood.
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Her Hangover co-star Ken Jeong once said: "She's amazing. She's not a monkey, she's an actor. And quite possibly the best actor I've worked with."