Russell Crowe has expressed his shock at the sudden death of mathematician John Forbes Nash Jr, whom he played in the 2002 film A Beautiful Mind. On Sunday, shortly after it was announced that Princeton University professor John and his wife Alicia had been killed in a car crash, the actor paid a heartfelt tribute to the couple.
© Photo: Getty ImagesRussell Crowe has said he was 'stunned' to hear of the death of John Nash
"Stunned... My heart goes out to John & Alicia & family," he tweeted. "An amazing partnership. Beautiful minds, beautiful hearts. "State police have confirmed that 86-year-old John and his 82-year-old wife were both killed when their taxi crashed on the New Jersey Turnpike, near Monroe Township, at around 4:30pm on Saturday 23 May.
"The reports said the couple may not have been wearing seatbelts when they crashed," stated the BBC.West Virginia-born John is best-known for his work in game theory and won the Nobel Prize for economics in 1994. In 2010 John won the Double Helix Medal and earlier in the week he had received the Abel Prize for his work.
© Photo: Getty ImagesJohn and Alicia died on Saturday
As portrayed by Russell in A Beautiful Mind, John struggled with paranoid schizophrenia following his diagnosis in the 1950s.Alicia, who was played by Jennifer Connelly in the film, helped care for her husband and the pair were praised as mental health advocates.John and Alicia first married in February 1957 and later welcomed a son John Charles Martin Nash.
© Photo: Getty ImagesRussell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly protrayed the couple in the film A Beautiful Mind
Due to the strain of dealing with John's schizophrenia, the couple divorced in 1963 although they resumed their relationship in the 1990s and remarried in 2001.A Beautiful Mind saw Russell nominated for the Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar in 2001. He won a BAFTA, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actor's Guild Award for his portrayal.
