Robert Irwin On His Wiggles Performance, Becoming Mates With Paris Hilton & His Wholesome Image

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, I’m sure you’ll be aware that Australia’s royal family the Irwins have joined forces with American royalty Paris Hilton for the new Uber Eats ad.

The latest drop in the delivery service’s award-winning ‘Tonight, I’ll Be Eating’ campaign sees Paris Hilton score a gig at Australia Zoo, where she works alongside Terri, Bindi and Robert Irwin.

I was lucky enough to fly over to LA to watch Paris Hilton film her portion of the ad and she bloody RAVED about the Irwins.

Upon returning to Australia, I interviewed old mate Robert and he, too, glowed about Paris, along with The Wiggles, his lovely fam, and the wholesome image we’ve watched them build.

Here’s everything Robert had to say during our chat.

ON PARIS

“You might think, ‘What on earth does Paris Hilton have to do with the Irwins? How does that even work?’ But we’ve got more in common than you might think! We’re both big, big animal lovers, maybe different kinds of animals, but we both have a really good respect for the natural world.

“I’ve always admired everything she’s done. She’s definitely an incredible force to be reckoned with. She really has taken on the world and done incredibly well. She’s created a huge empire and an amazing, amazing brand and she’s such a hard-working individual. She lives and breathes what she does and I think we definitely share that!

“It’s been really, really, really fun to create an unlikely friendship. And hopefully one that will continue and when she comes back to Australia, I’m sure we’ll definitely catch up.”

ON THE ‘TONIGHT, I’ll BE EATING’ AD

“I am really, really, really happy to see how it’s all come together. It’s fun for us to do something a little bit different and, of course, it’s still pushing that wildlife message and talking about all the beautiful animals we have at Australia Zoo but in a different way.”

ON HIS GO-TO UBER EATS ORDER

“This is tough because I literally eat anything you put in front of me. I am a sucker for a good gnocchi, so that’s usually what I end up going with. That’s my ultimate comfort food.”

ON BINDI’S GO-TO UBER EATS ORDER

“She’s really into acai bowls and Asian fusion. She loves all that natural organic stuff.

“As a family, with the whole wildlife conservation thing, we’re very, very mindful of what we eat and where it’s being sourced from and it’s nice because Uber Eats has us covered with whatever we wanna eat.”

ON HIS PERFORMANCE WITH THE WIGGLES

“It was a really beautiful experience. A really, really special experience. I knew it was gonna be fun, but I didn’t realise just how special and heartfelt that would be. We’ve worked with The Wiggles for a very long time, long before I was even born!

“The Wiggles and Dad became household names around the same time and they went over to Australia Zoo and they recorded a documentary, like a Wiggles Special for crocodile hunters and recorded a song all about the Crocodile Hunter at Australia Zoo and it was really wonderful.

“Since then, we’ve always had a lot to do with The Wiggles family and there’s an amazing, diverse range of people that are now part of The Wiggles and to be part of that is awesome.

“And then to perform on stage with all the originals and some of the awesome new Wiggles, it was amazing. And I’ve gotta tell ya, The Wiggles are some of the most hardworking people you’ll ever meet and truly just kind, amazing people. We’re kindred spirits. Plus just going on stage and messing around, having fun and dancing was very different to what I do.”

ON SHAKING THINGS UP

“That’s what life’s about. It’s about just trying a lot of different stuff. And if you haven’t done it before, if you’re unsure of what this new thing is, give it 100 per cent. Give it a good go. It’s gonna turn out good!

“I think I’m at that point in my life where I’m trying a lot of different things and exciting projects. And The Wiggles is definitely one of them, it was a great way to honour Dad, that was awesome. And this Uber Eats campaign is another thing where it’s totally different, but it’s been so rewarding and so much fun.”

ON HIS WHOLESOME REPUTATION

“For us as a family, it hasn’t really felt like an image or a brand or something to create or maintain. It’s not really like that, we’re sort of just doing what we do and we feel really honoured to be in a position where people can listen to this message we have and we can hopefully inspire people.

“I’ve grown up in this world and it’s a really unique and unusual life, but it’s been amazing. Having something that you stand for from a really young age is incredible because that usually takes people a long time to find and that’s fine, but for me it’s a very unique situation. I’ve always known what I wanted to do. I’ve always known it’s been about carrying on the legacy that my family and my Mum and Dad originally started. And for me, it’s such an honour to be in a position to create positive change, where I have a message, I have a platform and I can hopefully inspire people. And there’s a lot of responsibility that comes with that, but it’s also a really, really great privilege.”

ON THEIR FAMILY BOND

“We really truly do get along, we really love each other and we’re always there for each other. We’re always travelling with one another, we live and work at Australia Zoo. We live, breathe, love, everything that we do together as a family, fighting for a bigger mission and a bigger message. And we’re really happy that people come along for the ride and watch what we do and want to hopefully be inspired to create positive change in their own lives.

“It’s fun just doing what you do with people you love.”

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