2 months ago
5
Robert Irwin is hot property. Just ask the record number of viewers who tuned in and voted for him on Dancing with the Stars in the US. Or the millions of fans on TikTok who have been watching him, on repeat, rip his shirt off.
Even a friend of mine – not given to hyperbole – gasps when I mention his name, and then admits that an older woman in her office is “obsessed” with him, too. “We bought her a Robert Irwin calendar for Christmas,” she admits.
His mum, Terri, thinks he could be the next Tom Cruise. While US reputation consultant Eric Schiffer estimates Irwin’s brand to be worth about $US30 million ($45 million).
But for Irwin, that hype and “value” only mean one thing.
“All I can think about right now, if I had that $US30 million, is I could save a lot of wildlife with that,” says Irwin, who is speaking over Zoom from South Africa, where he is filming his third season of I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! as co-host with Julia Morris.
Robert Irwin and Julia Morris, hosts of I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
“Oh, man. I’m thinking about the amount of protected land you could buy with that, I’m thinking about everything you could do with our wildlife hospital, the amount of additions you could make on our rescue unit to save even more koalas. Like, all of a sudden, my mind just starts to tick over.”
There’s a reason the 22-year-old has been called a walking green flag. He’s genuine, thoughtful and can slide – unbidden – koalas into the conversation. And he always makes sure to mention the staff at Australia Zoo and the crew on I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! There’s a generosity of spirit there – and good ol’ plain manners – that runs deep.
In short, there are no flies on him, and if there were, he’d probably ask what species they were.
“You know, there’s a lot of, like, weird kind of attachments to that idea of becoming a man,” says Irwin. “But for me, this show [Dancing with the Stars] gave me this overwhelming sense of there’s power in vulnerability, like that is really important.
Loading
“I’ve always sort of worn my heart on my sleeve. And there are two performances [on Dancing with the Stars] that really stand out to me: a dedication performance that I dedicated to my mum, and then one that I dedicated to my dad [Steve] and my sister [Bindi].
“And I was really overcome with emotion because you are completely raw, like your filter is gone because you’re so exhausted, and you’re literally moving your body to music that is like an expression of your deepest emotions, and you can’t help but let that take over. And I’ve never cried so much in my life, and it was all on national television.
“But I was like, ‘You know what? I want to lean into that.’ And I really hope that other young people and young men can kind of go, ‘Oh, it’s OK if you’re raw and vulnerable and have that real emotion.’ And I think that an important part of being a bloke growing up is letting your vulnerability come through, and letting yourself be open to other people helping you out, and in some cases, being that person that can help other people out if they’re going through a rough time.”
Irwin and his dance partner, Witney Carson, react to being named winners of Dancing with the Stars in the US.Credit: Disney/ABC
When we speak in early December, Irwin has only just managed to come down from the hype of Dancing with the Stars. He won the giant mirror ball trophy after a three-hour finale in which he competed with an injured rib. Then it was days of press – flying from Los Angeles to New York – then a flight to London and then Johannesburg, and then a small plane to Hoedspruit, a town near Kruger National Park.
Loading
Waiting at the end of the runway for him in Hoedspruit, though, was one familiar face.
“I was absolutely exhausted; it has just been this insane whirlwind,” he says. “I hadn’t slept for three days, and I touched down, and I’m not even kidding, at the end of the runway, I just see this frantic movement, like this thing just bobbing around. And I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ And it’s Julia, and she’s standing at the end of the runway, jumping up and down.
“So I get off the plane, and she was just so stoked. And it felt great to return to a show that means so much to me and that feels so familiar. You know, after being on such a crazy whirlwind experience, to be back in town with Julia, to be working on something that we both love, and this crew of hundreds of people and to be surrounded by Australian accents again, was just great.”
Irwin is sitting outside his villa. He spins his laptop around to show the pool – it’s a balmy 25 degrees that day – and he admits to being a little homesick. He hasn’t been home to Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland since July (it’s not just Dancing with the Stars that has kept him away – he was on a croc tagging expedition in Cape York as well).
“I miss being able to just go out for a surf in Currimundi when I get an afternoon off, I miss hiking the Glass House Mountains, all of it,” he says.
Irwin and partner Carson on Dancing with the Stars. Credit: DISNEY
For the next couple of months, though, life will revolve around I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! It’s Irwin’s third season as co-host, after he replaced Dr Chris Brown in 2024. Like his famous dad, Steve, Irwin is a TV natural. He’s been on camera his whole life and has a genuine mix of excitement and likeability that can’t be faked. He was nominated for the Gold Logie for most popular personality on Australian TV in 2024.
Loading
“It just feels so comfortable,” he says of working with Morris. “And it just feels so like we know what each other is thinking to an extent. I mean, I never know what Julia is thinking. She is the most awesome and unpredictable individual ever, and it makes that hosting dynamic so much fun. But I feel like now we’re that comfortable that there’s so much space to really evolve and to really broaden the comedic space of what we can do, push the boundaries a little bit.”
Except when it comes to the food. The show – which puts a group of celebrities in the South African jungle who then have to endure various challenges before being voted out – is famous for its disgusting food challenges, such as eating testicles, guts, eyeballs, you name it. But that is where Irwin draws the line.
“I will jump off anything,” he says. “I will be in a tank full of whatever you want, but not the eating trials. It’s a solid no from me. But, you know, credit to I’m a Celeb, they did this really cool thing. It was talked about last season a little bit, but when I came on board, I said, ‘You’ve got to keep the eating trials, they’re hilarious, but we can’t consume any of the wildlife from Africa.’ And they made that deal. So now I can’t even say no [to the eating challenges], but still, I don’t want to eat a cockroach. I’m good. No, thank you.”
As for what comes after I’m a Celebrity, Irwin has the world at his feet. Like his mum, he jokes that yes, he could see himself as the next Tom Cruise (“I am very used to running away from things – I think I could give him a run for his money”), but it’s wildlife and conservation that will always be his top priority.
Terri, Bindi and Robert Irwin at the Australia Zoo in 2020.
“The thing that I most want to do, really, is return to my day job, first and foremost,” he says. “Because my day job is not dancing. I’ve always done TV work and that sort of thing, and I want to do more of that, but for now, I want to get home and just be at Australia Zoo, in there feeding crocodiles … my main priority right now is to completely reconnect with my day job and with what is most important to me, and that will always be where my heart beats from ....
“But I would hope [also] to be someone that young people can look at as an example of what it is to follow your passion and where that can take you. I really think that’s important. And to continue the legacy that’s so incredibly important to me that my mum and dad started. So I’m ready to take on big things, and I think that’s coming, and I’m excited for it.”
I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! Returns at 7pm on Sunday, January 18, on Ten.
Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.
