Crystal the Monkey
Encyclopedia
Crystal is a female capuchin monkey
and animal actor. She portrayed the irritating monkey Dexter in the 2006 film Night at the Museum
and the 2009 sequel Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
. In 2011, she played a drug dealing monkey in The Hangover Part II.
Crystal lives with her handler and trainer, Tom Gunderson, and his family.
and animal actress, Crystal is owned by Birds and Animals Unlimited. Having appeared in over 20 films by 2011, Crystal first appeared in the 1997 film George of the Jungle
.
She is known for her roles in the 2007 film Night at the Museum
and the 2009 sequel, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
as troublesome monkey Dexter. In the 2009 film, she slapped Ben Stiller
while her trainer encouraged her with "Get him! Get him! Hit him harder! Hit him harder!" Stiller joked that "I really dislike the monkey. There's no way to feel great about having a monkey slap your face on any level."
She has done cameo
s with David Hasselhoff
in the 2011 film Hop and with Ken Jeong
in the NBC comedy series Community
.
protested Crystal's appearance in the film for use of exotic animals for entertainment purposes, and the film does not carry the American Humane Association
's disclaimer that "no animals were harmed" since the group was denied set visits.
Ken Jeong
, Crystal's fellow Hangover, as well as Community, actor, praised her, saying, "She's amazing. She's not a monkey, she's an actor. And quite possibly the best actor I've worked with."
Capuchin monkey
The capuchins are New World monkeys of the genus Cebus. The range of capuchin monkeys includes Central America and South America as far south as northern Argentina...
and animal actor. She portrayed the irritating monkey Dexter in the 2006 film Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum is a 2006 fantasy adventure-comedy film based on the 1993 children's book The Night at the Museum by Milan Trenc. It follows a divorced father trying to settle down, impress his son, and find his destiny...
and the 2009 sequel Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is an American adventure comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, and Steve Coogan. The film is a sequel to Night at the Museum...
. In 2011, she played a drug dealing monkey in The Hangover Part II.
Crystal lives with her handler and trainer, Tom Gunderson, and his family.
Acting career
A female capuchin monkeyCapuchin monkey
The capuchins are New World monkeys of the genus Cebus. The range of capuchin monkeys includes Central America and South America as far south as northern Argentina...
and animal actress, Crystal is owned by Birds and Animals Unlimited. Having appeared in over 20 films by 2011, Crystal first appeared in the 1997 film George of the Jungle
George of the Jungle (film)
George of the Jungle is a 1997 live-action, family-oriented, romantic-adventure-comedy film based on the characters from the original cartoon of the same name. The film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures with Mandeville Films and originally released to movie theatres on July 16, 1997...
.
She is known for her roles in the 2007 film Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum
Night at the Museum is a 2006 fantasy adventure-comedy film based on the 1993 children's book The Night at the Museum by Milan Trenc. It follows a divorced father trying to settle down, impress his son, and find his destiny...
and the 2009 sequel, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is an American adventure comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, and Steve Coogan. The film is a sequel to Night at the Museum...
as troublesome monkey Dexter. In the 2009 film, she slapped Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
while her trainer encouraged her with "Get him! Get him! Hit him harder! Hit him harder!" Stiller joked that "I really dislike the monkey. There's no way to feel great about having a monkey slap your face on any level."
She has done cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
s with David Hasselhoff
David Hasselhoff
David Michael Hasselhoff is an American actor, singer, producer and businessman. He is best known for his lead roles as Michael Knight in the popular 1980s US series Knight Rider and as L.A. County Lifeguard Mitch Buchannon in the series Baywatch...
in the 2011 film Hop and with Ken Jeong
Ken Jeong
Kendrick Kang-Joh "Ken" Jeong , also known as "Dr. Ken," is an American comedian, actor, and physician. Currently, he appears as Ben Chang on the NBC comedy series Community.-Early life and medical career:...
in the NBC comedy series Community
Community (TV series)
Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television...
.
The Hangover Part II
Crystal portrays a drug dealing monkey in The Hangover Part II. Director Todd Philips raised concerns after he joked that Crystal had become addicted to cigarettes after learning to smoke them for the film. Philips later explained that Crystal never actually held a lit cigarette on the film’s set, the smoke was added digitally in post-production, and the cigarette was ceramic. Still PETAPeople for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is an American animal rights organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. A non-profit corporation with 300 employees and two million members and supporters, it claims to be the largest animal rights...
protested Crystal's appearance in the film for use of exotic animals for entertainment purposes, and the film does not carry the American Humane Association
American Humane Association
The American Humane Association is an organization founded in 1877 dedicated to the welfare of animals and children.The AHA's Film and Television Unit has monitored the welfare of animals during the production of films and television programs since 1940. They are the source of the familiar...
's disclaimer that "no animals were harmed" since the group was denied set visits.
Ken Jeong
Ken Jeong
Kendrick Kang-Joh "Ken" Jeong , also known as "Dr. Ken," is an American comedian, actor, and physician. Currently, he appears as Ben Chang on the NBC comedy series Community.-Early life and medical career:...
, Crystal's fellow Hangover, as well as Community, actor, praised her, saying, "She's amazing. She's not a monkey, she's an actor. And quite possibly the best actor I've worked with."
Filmography
| Year | Title | Character |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | George of the Jungle George of the Jungle (film) George of the Jungle is a 1997 live-action, family-oriented, romantic-adventure-comedy film based on the characters from the original cartoon of the same name. The film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures with Mandeville Films and originally released to movie theatres on July 16, 1997... |
Baby monkey |
| 1998 | Dr. Dolittle Dr. Dolittle (film) Dr. Dolittle is a 1998 American family comedy film starring Eddie Murphy as a doctor who discovers that he has the ability to talk to animals... |
Drunk Monkey |
| 1999 | American Pie American Pie (film) American Pie is a 1999 teen comedy film written by Adam Herz. American Pie was the directorial film debut of brothers Paul and Chris Weitz, and the first film in the American Pie film series... |
|
| 2000 | Terror Tract Terror Tract Terror Tract is a 2000 anthology dark comedy/horror film, featuring John Ritter as a real-estate agent trying to sell a variety of houses to a young couple; each with a horror story associated with it. The segment "Make Me an Offer" is the overall plot of the movie with Ritter and the three... |
|
| 2001 | Dr. Dolittle 2 Dr. Dolittle 2 Dr. Dolittle 2 is a 2001 American comedy film, and the theatrical sequel to the 1998 film Dr. Dolittle. The continuing tale of the doctor who can talk to the animals—this time, it's Dolittle versus Darwin when the animals launch a labor strike to protect their forest from unscrupulous human... |
Drunk Monkey |
| American Pie 2 American Pie 2 American Pie 2 is a 2001 comedy film and sequel to American Pie and is the second film in the American Pie film series. It was written by Adam Herz and David H. Steinberg, and directed by J. B. Rogers. The film picks up the story of the four friends from the first film as they reunite during the... |
||
| 2004 | Garfield: The Movie | Pet monkey |
| 2005 | Fun with Dick and Jane Fun with Dick and Jane (2005 film) Fun with Dick and Jane is a 2005 remake of the 1977 American comedy film of the same name, directed by Dean Parisot and written by Judd Apatow and Nicholas Stoller. It stars Jim Carrey and Téa Leoni as Dick and Jane Harper, an upper-middle-class couple who resort to robbery after the company for... |
Test monkey |
| 2006 | The Shaggy Dog The Shaggy Dog (2006 film) The Shaggy Dog is a 2006 film by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the second remake of the 1959 film of the same name, which was first remade as a television film in 1994.... |
Capuchin |
| Night at the Museum Night at the Museum Night at the Museum is a 2006 fantasy adventure-comedy film based on the 1993 children's book The Night at the Museum by Milan Trenc. It follows a divorced father trying to settle down, impress his son, and find his destiny... |
Dexter | |
| 2007 | 3:10 to Yuma 3:10 to Yuma (2007 film) 3:10 to Yuma is the 2007 remake of the 1957 film of the same name, making it the second adaptation of Elmore Leonard's short story Three-Ten to Yuma. It is directed by James Mangold and produced by Cathy Konrad, and stars Academy Award winners Russell Crowe and Christian Bale in the lead roles. ... |
|
| 2009 | Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is an American adventure comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, and Steve Coogan. The film is a sequel to Night at the Museum... |
Dexter/Able |
| 2010-2011 | Community Community (TV series) Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television... |
Annie's Boobs |
| 2011 | The Hangover Part II | Monkey |
| Zookeeper Zookeeper (film) Zookeeper is a 2011 comedy film starring Kevin James, and featuring the voices of Adam Sandler, Sylvester Stallone, Nick Nolte, Don Rickles, Judd Apatow, Jon Favreau, Cher and Faizon Love. The film contains computer animation, is produced by Sandler's production company, Happy Madison, and is... |
Donald the Monkey |