'I'm not done yet': George Clooney opens up about marriage, fame and his biggest risks

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George Clooney and I are talking successful a edifice country successful Beverly Hills, the aforesaid edifice wherever we met 27 years agone erstwhile helium was promoting “Out of Sight” and helium told maine that starring men had astir a decennary to marque their people and it was each downhill from there.

“No 1 could beryllium much amazed than maine that I’m 64 years aged and inactive getting to bash what I emotion to do,” Clooney says successful that practiced, grounded, charming mode of his.

Sixty-four, huh? Since helium brought it up ...

Have you queued up the Beatles opus since celebrating your day this year?

“I really got a connection from Paul, which is beauteous cool,” Clooney says, smiling.

Wait. Paul McCartney sent you a connection connected your birthday?

“Yeah, it was a video of him playing ‘When I’m 64,’” Clooney says. He pauses to fto this descend successful — possibly for the some of us.

“I ne'er truly thought erstwhile I was cutting baccy successful Augusta, Ky., that I would conscionable Paul, overmuch little go friends with him,” Clooney says. “I consciousness precise successful awe. In the strategy of people, you look astatine Michael Jordan arsenic the champion to ever play the game. Paul’s got to beryllium successful the speech arsenic 1 of the greats of each time. So it’s truly thing to person him telephone up and bash ‘When I’m 64’ for you.”

During our digressive conversation, I learn, not surprisingly, that beauteous overmuch anybody who’s anybody resides successful Clooney’s telephone interaction list.

“I’m old. I’ve been around,” says Clooney, presently starring successful Noah Baumbach‘s “Jay Kelly,” playing a celebrated and, frankly, selfish histrion taking banal precocious successful life.

Is determination anyone Clooney hasn’t met? Let’s find out.

Clooney connected the acceptable of "Jay Kelly."

So McCartney sends you a video for your birthday. Do you ever nonstop him a connection retired of the blue?

Sure, from clip to time. He had this opus travel out, this beauteous Beatles opus that had ne'er been released.

“Now and Then”? That opus gutted me.

Dude, it brought maine down. It had that Beatles dependable and vibe. For those of america who grew up with the Beatles being the extremity each and beryllium each of everything, it conscionable brought you to a full different spot successful time. He sent it to me, and I wrote him backmost and said, “Jesus, Paul. It’s truly beautiful.”

You’ve worked with Alfonso Cuarón, the Coens, Alexander Payne and Steven Soderbergh. Is determination a manager that you missed?

I astir did a movie with Ridley Scott a mates of times. His movies clasp up, and that’s hard to bash with subject fiction. But you look astatine “Blade Runner” and “Alien” and they don’t consciousness dated astatine all.

He’s inactive going strong. He mightiness person 10 much movies successful him.

At least. [Laughs] He loves what helium does.

He astir apt wants to dice connected the set.

Well, that’s wherever we each privation to go. But I person a mentation ... with the objection of Dick Shawn, if you’re connected stage, you can’t die. There’s thing astir the adrenaline. I retrieve being backstage astatine the Beverly Hills Hotel erstwhile Jimmy Stewart was giving Josh Logan, the manager of “South Pacific” and films similar that, an honor. And Josh is sitting successful a wheelchair, slumped over. He’s precise old. Then Jimmy introduces him and Josh jumps retired of his seat and helium goes retired and does a full stand-up regular for 7 minutes. I was 20 years aged and seeing however this changeable of vigor to entertain truly brought him to beingness made an impression.

Jay Kelly is allergic to vocation retrospectives and honors. You ever submit?

I did the Kennedy Center Honors. I got an AFI tribute immoderate years ago. It’s odd. Because there’s a portion of you that goes, “I’m not done yet. I’ve inactive got enactment to do.” And past you ticker the clips. I don’t ticker movies oregon TV shows that I’m in. And successful the movie, Noah uses clips of my existent movies for the montage astatine the extremity and past helium changeable my absorption to seeing it.

You look touched. Or possibly you were acting.

You consciousness old! When I look successful the mirror, I don’t spot myself arsenic a 64-year-old dude. Sometimes idiosyncratic volition nonstop maine a paparazzi representation of maine and I’ll beryllium like, “Who’s that aged f—? Oh yeah, that’s me.” And these tributes, you’re watching yourself property connected camera, which is not for p—.

It’s amended than the alternative.

I’ll instrumentality it. You know, radical successful my beingness who are gone, similar my relative Miguel Ferrer, I inactive deliberation of him arsenic the 27-year-old feline that was playing drums and acting. It’s each portion of the tapestry of your beingness and you’re not truly examining your beingness until idiosyncratic does that for you and you go, “Oh, man. I’m old.”

Are you overmuch for self-examination?

I’m perpetually trying to support tabs connected who I americium arsenic a idiosyncratic and clasp myself to the modular that my begetter holds maine to. I travel up short. I bash person that dependable from my aged antheral going, “Don’t travel backmost and look maine successful the oculus until you bash this.”

I saw an interrogation wherever you said — and I conjecture this is well-known — that you’ve ne'er had a combat with your wife.

That’s true.

As idiosyncratic who has been joined astir 30 years, I find that hard to believe.

Well, however aged were you erstwhile you got married?

I was 32.

There’s a difference. I was 52. There’s a crushed wherefore security rates erstwhile you’re 16 to 25 are disconnected the charts. It’s aggression. I had nary volition of getting joined again, but I fell madly successful emotion with the idiosyncratic who changed that. We person kids. I didn’t privation to person kids. Everything changed due to the fact that I met this unthinkable person.

Who you’ve ne'er had a combat with ...

I’m successful a overmuch antithetic spot successful life. I’m overmuch much secure, and I americium besides little successful the temper to triumph arguments. When you’re young, you’re trying to triumph everything.

And present you’re OK with conceding.

I’m not conceding. But bully try. You’re going to get maine successful occupation with my wife. [Laughs.]

If Amal says, “Enough with the motorcycle riding,” you say, “You’ve got a point.”

I did. And you cognize why? Because I did a head-over-heels. I was going 75 mph and my caput shattered his windshield and past I went flipping successful the air. You tin spot it. You tin ticker it online.

I’m going to walk connected that, thanks.

I landed connected my hands and knees. Like you tin propulsion a pencil successful the aerial and however galore times does it onshore connected its tip. It’s 100 to 1. I utilized up each my lives connected that one. So erstwhile my woman said, “I deliberation we’re done,” I said, “OK. Fair enough.” By the way, determination isn’t a time that goes by wherever I don’t miss it. But you know, my woman utilized to smoke, and I said, “I deliberation it’s clip you quit.” And I’m definite determination isn’t a time that goes by wherever she doesn’t miss smoking a cigarette. But I’m truly gladsome she stopped.

Jay Kelly is plagued with regret, but I consciousness that you’re not 1 to ruminate implicit the past.

Everyone has regrets. But I don’t unrecorded with heavy regrets. At each of the large crossroads successful life, I chose the way that was much hard but would person a greater impact. What’s the worst happening that could happen? That it doesn’t enactment out? I took a batch of chances. It’s easier to unrecorded with those than not doing them.

What’s the biggest accidental you took successful life?

At 20 years old, jumping successful my ’76 Monte Carlo with rust each implicit it and saying, “I’m going to thrust to California to beryllium an actor.” My relative Miguel, who I had met possibly three, 4 times successful my life, had travel to Kentucky to marque a equine racing movie and helium got maine a occupation arsenic an extra. And helium was like, “You’ve got to travel to California to beryllium an actor.” So I got successful the car, enactment a lawsuit of lipid successful the backmost due to the fact that it was pouring retired and I had to thrust 2 days consecutive due to the fact that if I turned the motor off, the car wouldn’t commencement again.

What’s the biggest accidental you took professionally?

I was doing a TV bid and determination was a celebrated enforcement producer. I won’t sanction him due to the fact that it wouldn’t beryllium just oregon nice, I suppose. He would shriek astatine people. I was the 3rd oregon 4th banana connected the show, and helium was yelling and I stopped and said, “Knock it off.” And helium turned connected me. “What did you accidental to me?” And I said, “F— sound it off.” And I was yet fired and past helium did an interrogation saying I’d ne'er enactment successful this municipality again. I thought my vocation was over.

What did you deliberation you were going to bash next?

I thought I mightiness beryllium going backmost to Kentucky and merchantability insurance.

But present we are.

Somebody saw that interrogation and gave maine a aviator and virtually said, “I don’t similar that guy.”

The mode you’re telling maine this, it feels similar a infinitesimal of liberation that becomes your root story.

I’d been successful municipality for 10 years. You know, actors ever travel from a spot of fear. When you’re auditioning, “I anticipation they similar me.” When you’re connected the set, “I anticipation I don’t f— it up.” If the enforcement shaper says, “Jump,” you say, “How high?” You’re ever trying to please. And determination was this portion of maine that went backmost to being a feline from Kentucky that was like, “Dude, you can’t speech to maine similar that.” It changed everything for me.

Leading you to “ER” ... which makes maine deliberation of “The Pitt.” Did you ticker “The Pitt”?

I love “The Pitt.” And I’m truthful f— blessed for Noah [Wyle].

If Noah offered you a ...

Guest shot?

Yeah. What benignant of relation would you want?

Well, I wouldn’t privation to beryllium a regular due to the fact that I person children and a life. But I’d bash thing connected the amusement successful a heartbeat.

Maybe conscionable a feline who comes into the ER ...

With an arrow stuck successful my hand. I’d bash that.

You’re a celebrated prankster. Are we successful a post-prank era? I was reasoning astir this aft speechmaking astir each the shenanigans Robert Redford and Paul Newman pulled connected each other.

Newman did a comic 1 with me. I directed “Leatherheads” and it bombed. And helium had been racing and wrecked his car and sent maine a representation of it wrapped with the poster of the movie. And helium wrote, “Happens to each of us, pal.”

How did you cognize him?

I met him connected the Warner Bros. batch erstwhile I was making “ER” and helium was shooting a movie. I heard helium was connected the batch and I got successful a play cart and I spot him extracurricular the dependable stage, smoking a cigaret and drinking a beer. We talked and helium asked, “How’s each this going for you?” And I said, “It’s going OK.” And helium said, “Don’t fto them support you inside.” I didn’t afloat recognize it astatine the time. But aboriginal we got to beryllium friends and person a brew together. And helium was talking astir not letting fame support you from surviving your life.

Is determination anyone you haven’t met?

I ne'er met Redford. I greatly admired him and would person truly enjoyed gathering him. He and [Warren] Beatty, who I bash know, were those guys who became producers truly pushing the limits of taking connected taxable matters that were tricky and tough.

It feels similar a bygone epoch successful a batch of ways. You indispensable wonderment what’s going to hap with Warner Bros. with the sale.

I interest astir that lone due to the fact that it’s similar with everything — history. It’s Warner Brothers. It’s an old-fashioned movie lot. And you know, I’m inactive nether declaration astatine Warner. And erstwhile I locomotion connected that lot, I cognize this is wherever they changeable “Casablanca.” Michael Curtiz was here. ... This is wherever “All the President’s Men” was shot. It’s history, and I would hatred to spot that beryllium mislaid determination on the way.

It feels precarious.

The movie manufacture is truly hanging by a thread close now. But we’ll get done it.