Steve Irwin, the fearless wildlife conservationist, known for his daring encounters with crocodiles and dangerous creatures, became a global legend. His seemingly indestructible persona crumbled with the shocking news of his sudden death. Months later, a billion-dollar mining company posed a threat to Steve's cherished legacy, leading his grieving family—wife Terri and children Bindi and Robert—to fiercely protect his memory and the values he held dear.
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00:00 She's gonna bite.
00:01 You're a good girl, I'm getting out.
00:03 Everyone thinks Steve Irwin was just a crocodile hunter.
00:08 But that's far from the truth.
00:12 The reason I've been put onto this planet
00:15 is to save wildlife.
00:17 Their habitat's being destroyed.
00:18 They're caught in a war.
00:20 They're gonna go extinct.
00:21 We're running out of time.
00:23 But when he tragically died, things got a lot worse.
00:27 Australia has lost more mammal species
00:29 than any other continent.
00:30 Once it's gone, it is gone.
00:32 So his wife and kids had to step in.
00:34 Steve Irwin's family is managing the conservation
00:37 and research at a nature reserve named in his honor.
00:40 Dad's favorite place in the entire world.
00:43 But it's also rich in minerals.
00:45 And now the miners want to move in.
00:48 If Terri was serious about conservation,
00:50 she should be encouraging us and working with us.
00:52 They'll take away all of the trees, grasses,
00:54 and other plants.
00:56 This is not an evil, this is a good project.
00:59 We have to stay together and get each other through this.
01:02 It's inappropriate to use a 10-year-old child
01:04 in a public debate.
01:05 He won the first round of this battle,
01:07 a court order giving him access to the reserve.
01:10 We're seeing terrible environmental destruction.
01:14 Town's decimated, community's ruined.
01:16 If we do nothing, we're in trouble.
01:19 Steve, look, look right there.
01:22 What's it doing?
01:26 Why is it, don't get too close.
01:28 Why isn't it going into the water?
01:29 It's dead.
01:30 It's dead, Terri, it's dead.
01:32 It's dead.
01:33 It's dead.
01:33 God, it's dead.
01:35 We got this phone call.
01:37 And apparently there was a crocodile in North Queensland
01:41 that was in danger of being shot.
01:45 Poachers were after it.
01:46 So they said, "Do you want to come back
01:48 "and try to catch this crocodile?"
01:49 Unfortunately, we didn't save the big male crocodile
01:53 and we found his body.
01:57 Now he's lost, gone forever.
01:59 A real shame.
02:00 But we were able to catch his female.
02:03 Okay, Terri, I want you to come up here
02:09 and I want you to rest your weight right on him.
02:12 Get right into it, babe, get right into it.
02:14 I'm really scared.
02:15 That's okay.
02:15 Drop back, drop back.
02:17 Okay, I'm back.
02:19 (dramatic music)
02:22 That's incredible.
02:33 I've been put on this planet
02:37 to protect wildlife and wilderness areas,
02:40 which in essence is gonna help humanity.
02:42 I want to have the purest oceans.
02:43 I want to be able to drink water straight out of that creek.
02:46 I want to stop the ozone layer.
02:48 I want to save the world.
02:49 And you know money?
02:50 Money's great.
02:51 I can't get enough money.
02:52 And you know what I'm gonna do with it?
02:54 I'm gonna buy wilderness areas with it.
02:56 Every single cent I get goes straight into conservation.
02:59 The time has come where if we don't get animals
03:03 into people's hearts, they're gonna go extinct.
03:06 Eastern Australia has been placed alongside
03:09 the most infamous places in the world
03:11 for forest destruction.
03:13 Australia has lost more mammal species
03:15 than any other continent.
03:16 We're running out of time right now, Larry,
03:19 right now as we stand here.
03:20 Our animals are dying.
03:22 Their habitat's being destroyed.
03:23 Steve was always in a hurry.
03:25 I want to get as much done as I can while I'm here.
03:28 I just can't do enough.
03:30 It drives me crazy that I've gotta go to sleep.
03:33 What made Steve a wildlife warrior
03:35 and what makes him so different to everyone
03:37 was he was prepared to do anything
03:39 for the protection of wildlife.
03:40 He was afraid of nothing.
03:42 And the most important thing to him
03:45 was to get people to embrace wildlife.
03:48 (dramatic music)
03:51 He came running in one evening
03:54 after sitting by the fire for a little while
03:56 and he said, "We've got to have children.
04:00 "We've gotta have children."
04:01 And so I was like, "Well, what's the urgency?"
04:04 And he said, "Who are we going to leave this all to?"
04:07 The whole reason you've been put on Earth
04:11 is to do this.
04:12 It's what it seems like.
04:18 When my children can take the football
04:23 that I call wildlife conservation and run it up,
04:26 when they're ready to run up our mission,
04:29 I will gladly step aside.
04:31 And I guarantee you it'll be the proudest moment of my life.
04:35 And my job will be done.
04:37 Then and only then will I know
04:40 that I have achieved my ultimate goal,
04:43 to be able to stand aside
04:46 and let them run up my mission.
04:48 - I remember Steve saying to me,
04:56 "I'm getting to the point in my life
04:59 "where I would like to spend more time being a dad
05:03 "and less time filming."
05:05 So he said, "I think after this documentary,
05:07 "I'm just gonna slow down a bit with the filming."
05:10 Steve was standing at the runway and waving goodbye.
05:15 And it was just this incredibly,
05:18 I don't know, poignant moment.
05:22 We all kind of had this strange sense of,
05:29 I don't know, foreboding.
05:31 It just felt really weird.
05:32 It felt like we should be together.
05:34 And I remember Steve and I had said,
05:37 "As long as we're together, we'll always be okay."
05:40 (somber music)
05:42 - I was traveling, so I couldn't get phone reception,
05:49 so no one could reach me.
05:51 And when I got to the destination for the night,
05:55 they said, "You have an urgent message."
05:57 And it was my brother-in-law on the phone.
06:00 And he told me what happened.
06:01 And I remember thinking, "Don't say it, don't say it,
06:07 "don't say it."
06:08 (somber music)
06:10 - He was swimming in shallows above a large stingray.
06:13 It turned quickly and lashed out with its tail.
06:16 The venomous barb pierced Erwin's chest.
06:19 - I looked out the window and I thought,
06:29 "Oh, my children."
06:32 He wouldn't have wanted to leave the children.
06:39 And I told her everything about it.
06:41 And she cried and cried and cried.
06:45 And I said, "We're still a family.
06:48 "Daddy still loves you."
06:50 - The exuberant conservationist
06:54 known as the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Erwin, died today,
06:57 killed by one of the dangerous animals
06:58 that he spent his life protecting.
07:00 - People continue to leave floral tributes
07:03 at Steve's Australia Zoo.
07:05 - Steve Erwin will be remembered as a wonderful showman
07:07 and a passionate conservationist.
07:09 But most of all, he was a husband and a father.
07:12 - What will you miss the most?
07:15 - You know what I'll miss the most, and it's very selfish?
07:20 He was fun.
07:23 Steve was fun.
07:27 He didn't sweat the little stuff.
07:30 He saw the big picture.
07:33 And he had fun.
07:37 Well, I'm gonna work really hard at having fun again.
07:41 - Oh, I hope you do.
07:43 - Well, I'm Mrs. Steve Erwin.
07:47 I've got a lot to live up to.
07:49 - It's been less than a year
07:54 since the Crocodile Hunter tragically passed away,
07:57 but his legacy is already under attack.
08:00 - Steve Erwin's family is managing the conservation
08:03 and research of crocodiles
08:05 at a nature reserve named in his honor.
08:07 But it's also rich in minerals,
08:09 and now the miners want to move in.
08:12 Paul Messinger heads the mining company
08:14 that's taking on the Irwins.
08:16 - Terry was serious about conservation.
08:19 She should be encouraging us and working with us.
08:21 - So this is it.
08:22 This is the bauxite that makes the aluminium.
08:25 That's the ore itself right there.
08:27 - And this stuff has locked you in a fight with the mine.
08:29 This is what it's all about.
08:31 - Absolutely.
08:32 - China has huge demand for aluminium.
08:35 If they don't get it from us,
08:36 they'll be getting it from rainforests in Borneo.
08:40 - So are you saying this is the lesser of two evils?
08:43 - This is not an evil.
08:44 This is a good project.
08:46 - I've lost so much sleep over this
08:51 and had such concern over this.
08:53 - This stunning rainforest was the last place
08:56 they were together as a family.
08:57 - This was dad's favorite place in the entire world.
09:02 - There's a whole host of species that live here,
09:05 and I'm hoping to see a few of them.
09:07 - More bad news for Steve Irwin's family,
09:15 just days before the anniversary of his death.
09:18 - Paul Messinger won the first round of this battle,
09:21 a court order giving him access to the reserve
09:24 to carry out an environmental impact study.
09:26 - Not only did Terry Irwin lose the court battle
09:30 against Cape Illumina,
09:31 she's being forced to pay the company's legal fees as well.
09:35 - What they don't tell you when you lose someone
09:38 is that you're afraid.
09:39 And you expect to be sad.
09:46 But it's a bit scary too,
09:54 tackling things on my own
09:55 and not having my best friend.
10:03 It's hard now.
10:05 I'm really trying.
10:06 - I know and I appreciate it.
10:08 - But I've lost my roots.
10:09 I've lost my roots.
10:13 - The opposition's hard and it keeps coming,
10:19 but I ain't stopping until my kids can run it up for me.
10:23 - My daddy was my hero.
10:25 He was always there for me when I needed him.
10:28 I know that daddy had an important job.
10:31 He was working to change the world
10:33 so everyone would love wildlife like he did.
10:36 He built a hospital to help animals
10:38 and he bought lots of land to give animals a safe place to live.
10:42 I don't want daddy's passion to ever end.
10:45 I want to help endangered wildlife just like he did.
10:48 Daddy made this place his whole life.
10:51 Now it's our turn to help daddy.
10:53 - If we do nothing, we're in trouble.
10:57 And he did more than anybody.
11:00 So I think we can all do something.
11:02 We will be wildlife warriors like Steve Irwin.
11:06 - As miners prepare to move in on Steve Irwin's land,
11:11 his young children are joining the fight.
11:14 - To get to the bulk site, which is what the mining company wants,
11:17 first, they'll take away all of the trees, grasses and other plants.
11:22 And then they'll take away all of the topsoil.
11:25 And then finally, they can reach the bulk site.
11:30 There's nothing left.
11:32 - There are frogs, crustaceans and fish that live in this water
11:36 and rainforests that are fed by this water.
11:39 So all of that would die.
11:41 - We're talking about complex issues
11:43 and I think it's inappropriate to use a 10-year-old child
11:46 in a public political debate of this nature.
11:48 - No-one made it more poignant
11:51 that one person could make a difference than Steve.
11:54 - If you've gotten a message and something important to say
11:57 and you have the opportunity to reach a greater audience,
12:01 I think it's important.
12:03 - An online petition has been created
12:05 hoping to get public support to help save Steve's place.
12:09 - The mining company going against the Irwins
12:11 is pushing back against their online petition
12:13 claiming that it is emotional manipulation.
12:16 - I know I can win. I'm very confident.
12:18 I don't want to look back on this in 20 years
12:20 and say what an embarrassment that we let go.
12:23 I want this to be a global triumph.
12:26 - It's cool to actually carry on where our dad left off.
12:30 - To keep his memory alive
12:32 and protect the Steve Allen Wildlife Reserve
12:34 for future generations to come.
12:36 - After an emotional six-year battle
12:38 with millions of dollars spent on petitions and campaigns,
12:41 the Irwin family's fight has finally come to an end.
12:45 - In a shocking turn of events,
12:47 the Queensland government announced
12:49 that mining will be banned in the next two years.
12:52 - The government announced that mining will be banned
12:54 on the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve,
12:56 giving the reserve more protection
12:58 than the Great Barrier Reef.
13:01 - This incredible wilderness area
13:03 is the size of the city of Chicago and New York
13:07 combined, 335,000 acres of government protected land.
13:14 [dramatic music]
13:22 - Cannot tell you how much just respect
13:26 and admiration I have for my mum.
13:29 She could see this legacy that he started,
13:31 and she said, "You know what?
13:33 "I'm making sure that this is going to continue and grow
13:36 "and get bigger and better every single year."
13:39 - G'day, and welcome to Australia Zoo.
13:41 - G'day, and welcome to Australia Zoo.
13:44 My mum and dad built the zoo
13:46 from a tiny little reptile park to what it is today.
13:49 Isn't it incredible?
13:51 [dramatic music]
13:57 - We've expanded our conservation properties.
14:00 We've got a wildlife hospital now
14:02 that's treated over 76,000 animals.
14:06 I'm very proud of being part of something
14:09 that is now even bigger than when Steve was here.
14:12 - And, you know, everyone saw Dad
14:14 as this larger-than-life character,
14:17 which he was in real life,
14:19 120% every single day.
14:21 But, you know, Mum--Mum's the one who's kept it going.
14:24 Pretty special.
14:26 [dramatic music]
14:29 - We want to make sure that everything that Dad lived
14:31 and died for continues on forever,
14:33 and we work every single day with our conservation.
14:36 - That's my mission.
14:38 I want to really continue his work
14:41 and make sure that his--his memory
14:43 and his message is kept alive.
14:45 It's--it's never really been what we do.
14:47 It's just who we are.
14:48 - I know he'd be very proud of his kids today
14:50 and what they are achieving in their lives.
14:54 - When they're ready to run up our mission,
14:57 I will gladly step aside.
15:00 Then and only then will I know
15:03 that I have achieved my ultimate goal.
15:06 [dramatic music]
15:09 ♪ ♪
15:16 ♪ ♪
15:19 [BLANK_AUDIO]