No matter if you’re a famous director or just an aspiring filmmaker that has zero credits to your name, odds are you’ll probably succeed more if you’re not so much of a jerk. And if you ever hope of landing George Clooney in your cast, that’s a necessity.
George Clooney, who recently spoke with the New York Times to promote his new Netflix sci-fi drama “The Midnight Sky,” spoke a little about the process in which he selects the filmmakers and collaborators that he wants to work with. Basically, if you’re an asshole, it doesn’t sound like you’ll know the joy of working with Clooney.
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“I’ve seen some films where I go, “Oh, that’s really interesting, smart filmmaking,’ but you also have to get to know directors a little bit,” he explained. “I have to know that they love what they do and they aren’t [jerks].”
You may wonder what is prompting this zero-jerks-allowed policy for Clooney, he doesn’t go too much into detail about any specific instances in his career that shaped his mindset. That said, it’s been reported numerous times that he (like many other actors) experienced friction working with David O. Russell (specifically on “Three Kings“). But even though he doesn’t give specifics, you can infer at least one of the people Clooney might be talking bout.
“We get to do something that most people I know would love to do for a living, so you should be celebrating that,” said Clooney. “I remember as a young man hearing movie stars talk about how hard their life was, and I was cutting tobacco for a living! I was like, ‘I want you to be telling me how great it is.’ I want to work with people that love what they do.”
He continued, “I don’t want people that are yelling and screaming and are angry at the world. Once, I was on a directors’ round table with a director who was like: ‘I break actors down. I’ll do 40 takes until they have nothing.’ I looked at him as an actor, and I was like, ‘Man, I’m never going to work with you.'”
Now, we’re not sure who Clooney is referring to, but there is definitely one filmmaker that comes to mind when talking about extreme numbers of takes. Maybe someone who recently directed a black-and-white period film that is going to be nominated for all sorts of Oscars and is currently streaming on the largest streaming service in the world? And if that doesn’t give it away, how about saying his name rhymes with Bavid Bincher?
But if you’re wondering who Clooney really enjoyed working with, look no further than his “Batman & Robin” director, Joel Schumacher. During the interview, he described a moment on set with the director using a bullhorn to direct him. Jokingly suggesting his other stories being “filthy.”
“Joel would use a megaphone to direct, and he would always go, ‘OK, George, remember: Your parents are dead, you have nothing to live for, and action!” The movie wasn’t very good, but who cares? He was a dear, sweet guy, and I think he had a very good life in general.”
You can watch Clooney’s most recent directorial effort, “The Midnight Sky,” on Netflix now.