Hollywood star George Clooney has launched a sharp retort at former US President Donald Trump, after Trump publicly mocked the actor's decision to become a French citizen and relocate his family to France permanently. The spat erupted over the New Year period, highlighting the ongoing cultural and political divides in America.
The Presidential Provocation
The row began when Trump used a New Year's Eve social media post to criticise the Clooneys. He labelled George and his wife, renowned human rights lawyer Amal, as "two of the worst political prognosticators of all time" following their official change of citizenship. Trump linked the move to France's "major crime problem", which he blamed on immigration policies he compared to those under President Joe Biden.
Trump didn't stop there, taking aim at Clooney's professional career. He branded the Oscar-winner an "average" actor who makes "totally mediocre" films, claiming Clooney sought more publicity from politics than from his movie roles. The post also referenced the actor's past political endorsements, including his shift away from supporting Biden after a debate performance.
Clooney's Pointed Response
Clooney, 64, responded with a characteristically dry statement to The Hollywood Reporter on New Year's Day. "I totally agree with the current president. We have to make America great again," he said, co-opting Trump's famous slogan. He then added a pointed temporal caveat: "We'll start in November." This was a clear reference to the next US presidential elections scheduled for November 2026.
The actor's decision to move was first detailed in an October interview with Esquire magazine. He explained that uprooting his family—including wife Amal, 47, and their eight-year-old twins Ella and Alexander—from Los Angeles was driven by a desire for a better quality of life. "I was worried about raising our kids in LA, in the culture of Hollywood," Clooney shared. He expressed a wish for his children to live somewhere "they kind of don't give a sh*t about fame" and to avoid constant paparazzi attention.
A New Life on a French Farm
The family now resides on a sprawling farm in France, which boasts 100 acres of vineyards and 1,200 olive trees. Despite an estimated combined net worth exceeding £400 million, the Clooneys are instilling a strong work ethic in their children. George described having the twins help him paint a fence rather than hiring someone, a task which left them "covered with paint and oil and stuff."
"They have a much better life," Clooney asserted, painting a picture of a more grounded existence. "They're not on their iPads... They have dinner with grown-ups and have to take their dishes in." He even drives them around the property on a tractor. The adjustment, however, has been trickier for George linguistically; he admits he is still "horrible" at French, while his wife and children have become fluent, a skill he jokes they use to talk about him without his knowledge.
Reflecting on his own journey from struggle to stardom, Clooney recounted years of financial hardship before his breakthrough role on ER in his mid-30s. He even shared an anecdote about using Amal's stockings as a makeshift fan belt to fix their broken-down 1962 Chrysler, a testament to the practical skills forged during his 15 years of being "f***ing broke."
The very public clash between the A-list actor and the former president underscores how celebrity lifestyle choices continue to ignite political commentary, setting the stage for further exchanges as the 2026 election cycle approaches.
