Crocodile Dundee Trilogy
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“I’ve never had to do anything I didn’t believe in. Sometimes, that meant being poor and waitressing a while longer, but I’ve always stuck with it.” Linda Kozlowski is a graduate of Juilliard with a Broadway pedigree, but she skyrocketed to fame with her co-starring role alongside Paul Hogan in the 1986 smash action comedy, Crocodile Dundee. While several movies followed, including two Crocodile Dundee sequels, Kozlowski eventually opted out of the movie business to pursue another passion: travel. Along with a partner, she launched Dream My Destiny, a bespoke Marrakech-based tour company.
Like many young girls, Linda Kozlowski spent her childhood dreaming of growing up and becoming an actress. Unlike most of them, she attained this goal -- and then some! -- with Crocodile Dundee, for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe in the Best Supporting Actress category. Still, Kozlowski left it all behind when other dreams beckoned. Here’s a closer look at this top 1980s leading lady’s unusual and exciting life, including why she left Hollywood behind for more exotic destinations.
The Road to the Outback
Linda Kozlowski was born on January 7, 1958 in Fairfield, Connecticut -- a long way away from the Australian billabongs that would one day make her famous. As a child, she dreamed of performing, and after completing high school she enrolled at New York’s prestigious Juilliard School, where she trained as an opera singer. One of her fellow classmate's at the famous performing arts conservatory? Val Kilmer.
After graduating from Juilliard in 1981, Kozlowski quickly landed her first role in an Off-Broad production of the play, How it All Began. Just a year later came another big break when Kozlowski was cast as Miss Forsythe in the Broadway production of Death of a Salesman. This led to her starring in the made-for-television film adaptation of the play, which debuted on CBS in 1985 and earned 10 Emmy nominations and four Golden Globe nominations.
While Kozlowski garnered critical acclaim with Death of a Salesman, she hadn’t yet attained commercial success. Then came Crocodile Dundee. But even that film’s success was a total surprise. For starters, it had a relatively low budget and was not expected to be such a massive hit. In fact, Kozlowski took the part only in the hopes of getting more recognition. Little did she know then that the movie would end up changing her personal and professional life forever.
Stepping Back from Stardom
Crocodile Dundee was made in Australia on a budget of less than $10 million. Not only did it appeal to mainstream American audiences, as well, but it went on to become a worldwide phenomenon. Shortly after its 1986 release, Crocodile Dundee became Australia’s highest-grossing film of all time, as well as the second-highest grossing film in the US that year. Its total box office haul? $328 million.
The film received a host of awards and nominations, including several nods for stars Hogan and Kozlowski. And while the movie did elicit some controversial due to its portrayal of Australia and Australians, leading Australian advertising executive David Droga recently declared, “There has been no better ad for Australia than that movie.”
Crocodile Dundee was followed by two sequels, Crocodile Dundee II (1988) and Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles (2001). However, neither achieved the critical or popular success of their predecessor. And while Hogan and Kozlowski found romance on set and went on to get married, they parted ways after many years as a couple. Explains Kozlowski of the divorce, “Honestly, we just naturally grew apart. One of our problems was we really had nothing in common and, over time, that happens to a lot of people.” Kozlowski also says she got lost in Hogan’s fame at times. “I loved in Paul’s shadow for many, many years and it’s nice to feel my own light right now,” she continues.
Aside from Crocodile Dundee, Kozlowski struggled to find parts she approved of. “After Crocodile Dundee, I turned down lots of stuff, most of it where I’d play the girlfriend of some funny man," she says. This ultimately prompted Kozlowski to walk away from it all. “These straight-to-video, schlocky films I was getting were giving me an ulcer, basically because I was the only one on the set that cared about anything... Between that and my biological clock, I decided to give it all away,” she reveals.
Kozlowski ended up trading in one passion for another. Her second act? Starting a tour company in the North African country of Morocco, a place she loves. The company is called Dream My Destiny. Says Kozlowski of her goals for the future, “My ambitions now are to continue to work hard with my tour company well underway and to enjoy the wonderful people and experiences that cross my path as a consequence of this endeavor. I also want to keep traveling and start a line of Moroccan-inspired clothing down the line!”
Kozlowski also notes that while acting didn’t turn out to be everything she’d hoped it would, her new career and life of travel is exactly what she’d been looking for. “‘One thing I always hated about acting was that it got in the way of having an adventurous life. You had to stick around LA and wait for work. Now I’m rejoicing in my freedom,” she says.
Not many people realize their dreams only to figure out that they don't want them, after all. Certainly Kozlowski is an inspiring lesson that fulfillment can still be found. She raves, “My biggest achievement is raising my very cool 16-year-old son, Chance, followed by surviving Hollywood and now, starting a whole new existence midlife!”
Kozlowski also has words of advice for other aspiring actors. “Never give up, never second guess yourself and never compromise your vision,” she counsels. “If you do, you’ll regret it every time.”
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