George Clooney hits back at critics who say he only plays himself in movies: 'I don't give a s**t'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: George Clooney has fired back at those who accuse him of playing himself in every role.
The 64-year-old actor, with a career spanning four decades, insists such criticism doesn’t faze him.
George Clooney defends his acting range
George Clooney stars alongside Adam Sandler in Noah Baumbach’s upcoming Netflix movie 'Jay Kelly', which also features Laura Dern, Billy Crudup, Riley Keough, Jim Broadbent, and Greta Gerwig.
The film will premiere at the Venice Film Festival on August 28.
Speaking to Vanity Fair about doubts over his acting range, Clooney responded sharply, “Do people say that I only play myself? I don’t give a s**t.”
He added, “There aren’t that many guys in my age group that are allowed to do both broad comedies like 'O Brother, Where Art Thou?' and then do 'Michael Clayton' or 'Syriana'. So if that means I’m playing myself all the time, I don’t give a s**t.”
He also recalled his conversation with Noah expressing his reservation about acting in 'Jay Kelly': “I literally said to him, ‘Noah, look, I love the script. I love you as a director, but I’m 63 years old, dude — I can’t do 50 takes,’” Clooney said. “I don’t have it in me. I’ve got the acting range from A to B.”
Clooney also referenced a line from his character in 'Jay Kelly', saying, “Have you ever tried playing yourself? It’s hard to do.”
George Clooney advises making peace with aging or getting out of business
The 'Ocean’s 11' star noted that he benefited from not finding huge fame too early.
“I’ve been the beneficiary of having my career not be massively successful in lots of different directions," he said.
"I didn’t really get successful, in the kind of success that can be blinding, until I was 33 years old [when ER began]. I’d been working for 12 years at that point. I had a real understanding of how fleeting all of it is and how little it has to do with you, quite honestly,” he said.
He also called finding a role like 'Jay Kelly' at this stage “a precious thing,” adding, “When you’re an actor in my position, at my age, finding roles like this aren’t all that common.”
Clooney advised, “If you can’t make peace with aging, then you’ve got to get out of the business and just disappear.”
George Clooney praises Adam Sandler’s performance in ‘Jay Kelly’
George Clooney compared Adam Sandler’s role in the film to his acclaimed performance in 'Uncut Gems'.
“This film, more than any film Adam has done, shows what a beautiful, heartfelt, soulful actor he is,” Clooney said.
He continued, “I kept telling the cast, ‘Don’t call him Sand Man. Don’t talk to him like he’s just some goofy comedian."
He added, "He’s actually a really beautiful, wonderful actor. Because of what his paycheck is, which is doing big goofy comedies, when he does these other, beautiful, Uncut Gems kinds of movies, it reminds people of that. He’s not just a good comedian.”
