D
And your clique of very close friends, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, if they’re in it, you’re going to jump in? I don’t like those two [laughs, joking]. I would do anything with them. We have an ‘Oceans’ film that, as soon as we get our schedules worked out, we’re going to shoot.
16
Congratulations on your golden lion for lifetime achievement. What is it like for you to be one of the most loved actors in the world and one of the most famous people. your prize here is fully deserved. but do you ever wonder if things could have gone differently? Well, things usually do go differently. Listen, this is a film festival that has been very dear to me. My first big directing gig, ‘Good Night and Good Luck’, was here. I’ve had immense successes, and I’ve had massive failures. I remember I was here with Catherine Zeta-Jones for ‘Intolerable Cruelty’. And none of the jokes played here. And it was over. And usually people stand up and applaud. And everybody just turned and looked at us. And I looked at Catherine, and I said, ‘Run!’ [laughs]. And we ran out of the theatre. I have a great affection for this festival in a very deep way. I’ve had just such a wonderful time. And I love coming here. Careers are really funny. It’s so many different accidents that get you here. So many different lefts and rights and things that could have gone wrong or right. It’s hard to sustain all of that. And you rely on the kindness of friends and the kindness of people you work with. But it really requires luck all the way through. It really does.
What a career you’ve had. Two oscar wins. what still drives you and what scripts are you still looking for? What makes you think when somebody sends you a script, this is something i’m going to take on? Well, there’s such a vast array of things that come into play. But first and foremost, there’s always a script. You can’t make a good movie out of a bad script. You can make a bad movie out of a good script, but the other way around is hard to do. So it always starts with a script, and then it’s the director. And nowadays, it’s a little more about when and where, because I do have other obligations in life. When I was really rolling, I was doing three films a year, and I can’t do that anymore. I have too many other things going on in my life that I have to pay attention to, mostly about trying to look out for other people. That’s part of what my wife and I have spent our time doing. But also parts get different. You get older, and you go, ‘Wow, I’m not going to play that part anymore.’ So that’s okay. That’s part of the fun of it, too. But it starts with a script, always.
LIVE24-SEVEN.COM
In addition to being a great actor, you’re also a great director. however, the critics, on some of your films, have been unfair, in our opinion. Is this a regret for you? And are you working on a new film as a director? You know, I’m not continuing to work as a director for really sort of a... Not because I’ve had... I’ve had great experiences, I’ve been nominated for an Oscar, and I’ve also had really bad experiences. That’s part of telling stories, right? People will agree or disagree. I’ve done films that people hated when they came out, and now they like them. And I’ve done films that people liked, but now they look at [them] and think they don’t work anymore. Timing is a lot of that. But the only reason I’m not directing, which I love doing, is because I have two nine-year-old kids. And in order for me to spend time with them, I can’t... if I act in a movie, it’s three months, and I can go and come and go and come back. When you direct a movie, it’s a year wherever you are, and there’s no travelling back and forth. So I can’t do that anymore. The last thing I did was this play last year on Broadway, and that took us all away for a period of time. I can’t really pull the kids out of school anymore. It’s fun to be an actor again. I’m enjoying it.
Last year you came here to present ‘Jay Kelly’, a film about an actor’s career that was coming to an end, being honoured at a festival. It’s a romantic, poetic, but also melancholic film. Do you feel a bit like Jay Kelly? Well, today I do. It’s a little bit similar to the tribute I get in the movie, which is kind of funny. I’m 65 years old. Everything is melancholy, you know? Literally. You brush your teeth, and you go, ‘Arghgh, my teeth used to be so much nicer.’ Everything about getting older, you get a little melancholy. I also feel very lucky. I have an incredible wife who I love very much and who loves me, and I have great kids, and I continue to be able to work when I want to. Life is pretty good. There’s a lot of stuff in the world that isn’t, and we focus on that a lot. But you also have to focus on the things that are good in life. We all tend to... We feel the weight of things, and we should, because there’s an awful lot of things to feel. We also have to remember to celebrate the good things that are happening in our lives because there are an awful lot of those too.
A quick follow-up on ‘Jay Kelly’, you said in some of the interviews, when you were talking about the clip reel there, that your memories are not memories of films but of making them. is that what’s really important to you? Yeah. If I watch a movie that I’ve been in, I don’t see it as a movie. I see it as remembering the people that I met or the people I worked with. I think that the experiences are the fun part. I was never one of those actors that sat in his trailer and then came to the set when it was time to work because I’m from Kentucky; we try to stay out of trailers. I like being on sets. It’s magical. I’m sure you have been on sets. It’s really funny to watch 300 people running around, and all of a sudden somebody says, you know, ‘rolling’ and ‘action’, and everybody suddenly is all working in the same direction.
INTERVIEW GEORGE CLOONEY
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124
