George Clooney

Hollywood’s favorite all-rounder talks film, fame and freedom. Clooney the Conqueror. Th e celebrity interview almost always becomes a game of catand-mouse. Publicists have one mission in mind: increase box offi ce revenues and boost star status. Interviewers, meanwhile, have a very diff erent goal: get inside the mind of the celebrity and fi nd out what separates the mediocre from the truly great. And the big shots themselves? Well, they’re the x-factor in this little tango, and ultimately, they control the dance. Some remain publicity-shy; others are more than willing to speak, but their quotes are the intellectual equivalent of an extra strength dose of Ambien. Which makes a guy like George Clooney the rarest celebrity species of all…

Let’s call him Interviewus Spectaculari. He always comes to play, whether he’s promoting a big-budget blockbuster like Ocean’s Twelve (for which he was paid $20 million) or making the rounds for labors of love such as the Oscar-nominated Good Night, and Good Luck (which he wrote, directed and starred in—paying himself one dollar) and Syriana (for which he made a paltry $350,000, earning spinal injuries and a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his trouble).

The Good German marks your fi fth fi lm with Steven Soderbergh as director, and you guys ran a production company (Section 8) together. What makes you such a good team?
We have the same sort of taste and like to work the same way. We’re also both in the position to fi ght for films we wanna see get made. I don’t know how long that will last, but right now we’re really digging it. It was fun to work with guys like Todd Haynes (Far From Heaven) and Christopher Nolan (Insomnia) before the studios really knew them. I enjoy the idea of making fi lms like the studios used to make from 1965-75. Guys like Kubrick, Scorsese and Coppola were making studio movies that were unparalleled, and I think that can happen again. The trick is to have people like me take less money so we can make them cheaper—then the studio’s gamble is less.

Do you feel like you have to do a guaranteed hit, such as next year’s Ocean’s Thirteen, every once in a while to buy yourself the chance to make personal fi lms like Good Night, and Good Luck?
Yeah, we understand that, and we’re not snobs about it. But it’s nice if that fi lm is Ocean’s Thirteen and not Batman & Robin.

I think we’re all thankful for that.
(Laughs) I really like the Ocean’s series. They’re good movies. They are what they are, and they do what they’re designed to do well. And that’s great, because then they let you go play.

How rewarding is it to be able to work with respected directors such as Soderbergh and the Coen brothers over and over again?
They’re not just respected—I’d say they’re among the best filmmakers. When I think about working on “The Facts of Life,” I never thought I was gonna be where I am today, so just to be in that company is an honor and a privilege that I don’t take lightly. That’s part of the fun, being part of something with people who stick their necks out.

Have your experiences as a director changed your approach as an actor?
It’s funny, there are scenes or takes that Steven cut out of the movie that were better for me as an actor, but now I understand that what he did was better for the film. When you’re an actor, it’s all very myopic, because you’re so concerned with your world. As a director, you have to be concerned with the whole film, so you need somebody with a strong point of view.

Is there any one film you’d point to as the high water mark in your career?
You never know what will be a high water mark. History is proving Three Kings to be a high point, because of what it says politically, and I think Out of Sight is one of the best films I’ve made. All I know is I’m enjoying the various flood stages. I’ll do some bad [movies] and screw up, but until they take away the option for me to try and do interesting things—which they will, because everybody loses it at some point—I figure why not keep trying to do the stuff I really like and swing for the fences? At least that way I’ll be happier than if I was just doing things because I think there’s an audience for it. I’d rather try to find the audience.

Some pundits have criticized your recent films as anti-American. What’s your take on that?
I don’t think any of my fi lms have been anti-American. The whole idea of America was based on dissent and raising questions. It’s why we left King George. It’s your right and your duty to ask questions. I don’t think we provided any answers in a fi lm like Syriana, we just asked a lot of questions. I think one of the big surprises for anyone is that you see fi lms like these coming from a major studio. I think that’s a good thing. Studios used to make fi lms like Harold & Maude.

Your outspoken political nature has earned you plenty of critics on the conservative side of the spectrum. Do you ever tire of taking the heat from people who don’t share your viewpoints?
I’m a big kid. If I’m going to speak out about things, or raise issues, or ask that we raise questions before we start a war, I know I’m going to get put on the cover of a magazine and be called a traitor. I’m a grown-up. I could sit in my house in Italy and drink wine and have a good time. Or I can stick my neck out and get slapped a little bit. The thing about demanding freedom of speech is that you can’t say, “don’t say bad things about me.” You have to take your hits.

Last year you got three nominations and came away with your first Oscar. Is it gratifying to be on top of the mountain after all the struggles you faced early in your career?
Well, nobody ever thinks they’re at the top of the mountain. But it is fun to be where I’m at right now, where I can pick and choose the roles I want. Coming out of Return of the Killer Tomatoes, that wasn’t an option, so you respect that position once you get it. But believe me, once you direct a movie, you don’t feel like you’re on top of anything: you feel like you’re at the bottom, with a bunch of stuff heaped on top of you. The truth is, I’ve made plenty of mistakes, but they all led me here. And here is fine for me right now.

A typically modest answer for the atypically charming George. If he doesn’t feel he’s at the top of his game, fans and film buffs everywhere can see it for themselves—and with the release of The Good German, there’s yet more scope for the actor to charge onward and upward. By George, this guy really has got it.