Sumith Prasad
In Apple TV+’s crime drama series ‘Bad Monkey,’ Driggs is the companion of a Bahamian fisherman named Neville Stafford. The monkey becomes part of his life after featuring in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise. The animal cherishes a satisfactory life with the young man, who offers the former grapes and beverages. Crystal the Monkey, arguably the most famous monkey in Hollywood, plays Driggs in the black comedy. The tufted capuchin’s movies have grossed billions at the worldwide box office, making her one of the prominent stars of the show. The 30-year-old has shared the screen with some of the biggest A-listers in the industry and worked with legendary filmmakers such as Steven Spielberg!
Crystal is a Hollywood Superstar
Crystal is owned and trained by Tom Gunderson of Birds & Animals Unlimited, the largest provider of animals in Hollywood. The animal trainer came across the monkey in 1996 when the latter was around two and a half years old. One of their initial gigs included Universal Studios Florida’s stage show Animals Actors. She made her on-screen debut with an appearance in the 1997 comedy film ‘George of the Jungle.’ After appearing in movies such as ‘Doctor Dolittle,’ ‘Terror Tract,’ ‘American Pie,’ and ‘Fun with Dick and Jane,’ Crystal became part of ‘Night at the Museum’ and its sequel ‘Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.’
Crystal’s ‘Night at the Museum’ appearances paved the way for more roles, which included Amy Farrah Fowler’s Ricky the Smoking Monkey in the globally renowned ‘The Big Bang Theory’ and Drug Dealing Monkey in Bradley Cooper’s ‘The Hangover Part II.’ Still, her performance in Matt Damon’s ‘We Bought a Zoo’ can be seen as her breakthrough role. The biographical drama’s director, Cameron Crowe, agrees. “We feel this is Crystal’s breakthrough performance. It is her ‘Carnal Knowledge.’ The role brings out colors we have yet to see,” he told New York Magazine.
Crystal landed her first series regular role with Dr. Rizzo in NBC’s sitcom ‘Animal Practice.’ She stars alongside Justin Kirk’s George Coleman in the show. “Crystal’s always on the set on time; that’s never an issue. With all the amazing things Crystal can do, I’m going to cut her some slack and let her poop whenever she wants,” Kirk told the Los Angeles Times about the tufted capuchin. She also stars in Mark Ruffalo’s ‘I Know This Much Is True’ and NBC’s sitcom ‘Community.’
Crystal Lives With Tom Gunderson Today
Crystal lives on the three-acre property of her trainer, Tom Gunderson, located thirty minutes east of Los Angeles, California. Both of them are nothing but inseparable. “Most of the time, she sleeps in bed by my leg with me and my wife. She really likes to snuggle up with us,” the animal trainer told Variety in 2014. The tufted capuchin generally does not stay away from her lifelong companion. “She becomes very insecure when we’re separated. We’ve developed trust. I had to prove to her that I’m going to look out for her and am not going to hurt her,” Gunderson said in the same Los Angeles interview.
Crystal joined ‘Bad Monkey’ after working with Steven Spielberg in ‘The Fabelmans.’ Bill Lawrence, who developed the series based on Carl Hiaasen’s novel of the same title, had no difficulty respecting her experience. “I think we all felt more secure that Crystal the Monkey has worked on more shows and movies than any actor, writer, or actress on the show. She was the most professional; she was horrible miscast because she’s actually a very good monkey,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. However, Vince Vaughn, who headlines the show, did not have a great time with the “talented monkey.”
“I’ll never work with that one again. Talk about sucking up all the oxygen on a set, it’s like, ‘I got it.’ Handlers, big entourage — unapproachable,” Vaughn jokingly said in the same THR interview. “People would warn you about her — ‘Don’t come up from behind her.’ Lot of rules on the set; very uncomfortable. I’d rather be honest with everyone out there than create some facade like we got along — we didn’t get along,” the actor added. On the other hand, Charlotte Lawrence, who plays Caitlin, described Crystal as the “queen of my world.”
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