George Clooney responds to Donald Trump’s “fake movie actor” attack

George Clooney has spoken out about the attacks he faced from Donald Trump over social media last summer.

After Clooney wrote an op-ed piece for the New York Times in July 2024, urging then-president Joe Biden to step down rather than run for re-election and allow a different candidate to enter the race, Trump took to Truth Social to share some harsh words about the star.

The now-president posted: “So now fake movie actor George Clooney, who never came close to making a great movie, is getting into the act. He’s turned on Crooked Joe like the rats they both are.”

As reported by The Guardian, during an appearance on US breakfast show CBS Mornings, Clooney shared his thoughts on Trump’s reaction.

He said: “I don’t care. I’ve known Donald Trump for a long time. My job is not to please the president of the United States. My job is to try and tell the truth when I can and when I have the opportunity. I am well aware of the idea that people will not like that.”

The star continued: “People will criticise that. Elon Musk has weighed in [about me]. That is their right. It’s my right to say the other side.”

Clooney also alluded to Trump’s posts in a new Variety interview with fellow Broadway star Patti LuPone. In response to LuPone asking whether the Ocean’s Eleven star ever wonders about Elon Musk, and how he has time to tweet, Clooney said: “Well, the president of the United States sent some nice tweets. It’s funny because he’s just a New York beast.

“We’ve all known him for 30 years, and he was just a guy chasing women. But whatever. It’s fine. We’re going to get through it.”

Speaking to the current state of politics in the US, and Trump in particular, the actor went on to say: “He will go away. They don’t have anybody that’s as charismatic as him. He’s charismatic. There’s no taking that away from him. He’s a television star. But eventually we’ll find our better angels. We have every other time.

“If you’re a Democrat, we have to find some people to represent us better, who have a sense of humour and who have a sense of purpose. I think we’ll get the House back in a year and a half, and I think that’ll be a check and balance on power.”

Clooney isn’t the only star speaking out against President Trump recently. Seth Rogen made a pointed jibe at him whilst presenting an award at the prestigious Breakthrough Prize ceremony last week, though it was cut from the broadcast, and Elton John and Brandi Carlisle have united to offset the Trump administration’s cuts to HIV/AIDS relief.

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