Reasons for the couple's split have not been given, but it is thought to be amicable.
Rumours had circulated Danielle was getting close to her partner on the Australian version of Dancing With the Stars, Damian Whitewood, but she and Russell denied he was more than a friend.
The Oscar winning star's schedule could also have been a factor, as he has been in Hollywood shooting back-to-back films for some time starring in six movies scheduled for release in the next year: The Man with the Iron Fists, Les Miserables, Broken City, Man of Steel, Noah and Winter's Tale.
CROWE SWEATS AFTER MARRIAGE SPLIT
Crowe is throwing himself into his music, acting and exercise as news of his marriage split spreads around the world.
After 22 years together - nine of them as husband and wife - Crowe and Danielle Spencer have parted.
No public comment has been made by the Oscar-winning actor or his musician wife, since being reported on Monday.
Crowe is currently in the US filming the biblical epic Noah, while Spencer, daughter of songwriter, singer and television entertainer Don Spencer, reportedly remains in Sydney with their two sons.
The Gladiator star spent the weekend in New York, where he took the stage at the Gramercy Theatre for the Indoor Garden Party on Saturday night.
"Because of my work hours IGP rehearsal started after 2am, not the best time, unless you are with that particular group of people," Crowe tweeted at the weekend.
Aside from acting, Crowe has always had a passion for music, first forming the band 30 Odd Foot of Grunts in the '80s and now performing with The Ordinary Fear of God, which began as a collaboration with Canadian Alan Doyle.
In August Crowe treated to fans in Iceland to a surprise gig, and then told Twitter that his wife would be joining him on stage in New York.
"October 13th line up Crowe & Doyle, Scott Grimes, Kevin Durand, Size2Shoes and Danielle Spencer. Venue in Manhattan,1 show, details soon'', he tweeted.
It's understood the decision to separate was amicable, with Crowe and Spencer committed to protecting their two boys, eight-year-old Charles, and Tennyson, six.
To help him through the devastating break-up the 48-year-old star is pushing himself with his fitness. On Friday he tweeted: "yesterday 11.6km bike ride to work,30 mins yoga,light weights today so far 14.5 km stat bike,20 mins light weights."
It's been a busy year for both Crowe and Spencer with the couple often spending many weeks apart, mostly due to Crowe's acting commitments.
The New Zealand-born actor has six films coming out in the next 12 months: The Man with the Iron Fists, Les Miserables, Broken City, Man of Steel, Noah and Winter's Tale.
Crowe was also absent for much of the 2012 season of the South Sydney Rabbitohs, in which he has a financial interest.
Spencer, 43, has also been in the limelight this year as a contestant on the Seven Network's Dancing With the Stars. With a natural flair, Spencer and her dance partner Damian Whitewood made it to the grand final.
During the series, Crowe and the young boys were in the audience to support her.
However rumours their relationship was in trouble surfaced in June when photos appeared showing Spencer on a night out with her dance partner.
The photos showed Spencer and Whitewood with their arms wrapped around each other at The Star, in Sydney.
At the time the couple refused to answer questions about their relationship, but Crowe was snapped embracing Spencer in a rare display of public affection between the couple at Los Angeles airport just days after the photos were published - a move seen by some as damage control.
Crowe and Spencer first met 22 years ago on the set of the film, The Crossing. The couple later broke up and Crowe headed overseas to find work.
During their time apart Crowe had a romance with US actress Meg Ryan, before he returned to Australia and proposed to Spencer in 2002.
The pair were married in 2003 at Crowe's farm in Nana Glen, near Coffs Harbour.
Shortly after their wedding, Crowe talked of his relationship with Spencer: "I've been thinking about it for a long time so I don't have any second thoughts. The thought crossed my mind the first time I met her."
As parents, both Crowe and Spencer have been committed to giving their sons as normal a childhood as possible, despite their father's worldwide fame.
Five years ago Crowe wrote a letter to his sons, as part of a National Trust time capsule, which said: "I know I will have brought you up to love your mother above all. You have no idea how much our lives have been blessed by you."
The family lived in the Sydney suburb of Woolloomooloo before moving this year into a $10 million home at Rose Bay.
With his larrikin tendencies Crowe made headlines back in 2005 with a phone-throwing incident in New York.
Crowe was arrested for assault after a fight with the concierge at the Mercer Hotel over an international call he was trying to make to Spencer.
Meanwhile Spencer was often credited with being a calming influence on her husband.
"I'm not condoning his behaviour," she said at the time. "I don't want to make excuses for him because I'm certainly not.
"But I do understand when you're apart that the loneliness kicks in."
It has been reported in Fairfax newspapers that Spencer could get a settlement of $25 million.
- AAP
