Australian actress Rose Byrne has provided the voice of Ruby,who will appear on billboards in Singapore,London,New York and Japan. Japanese actress Maryjun Takahashi will voice Ruby in Japan.
Farrell told ABC Radio National on Wednesday that Ruby the kangaroo was “the new Paul Hogan” and Australia had a chance to take advantage of pent-up tourism demand,particularly in Japan,which opened its borders to international tourists on Tuesday.
“We want to give them a positive,and I might say happy,message about the opportunities to come to Australia,” Farrell said.
“The Australian tourism industry has been very hard hit by the lack of overseas tourists,particularly in north Queensland,the Gold Coast and big capital cities.”
Before COVID-19 hit,9.5 million international visitors travelled to Australia annually,spending $45.4 billion. But border closures enacted in March 2020 stopped all international tourists from entering. Vaccinatedoverseas tourists were allowed back into Australia in February this year.
Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released on Tuesday show despite the easing of COVID-19 restrictions,arrivals remain well below pre-pandemic levels. Short-term visitor arrivals in August were 55.8 per cent lower than the pre-COVID levels in August 2019.