George Clooney Quitting Acting For Family?

Truth rating: 0

(Woman’s Weekly)

Is George Clooney quitting acting for family? A tabloid cover story claims the Oscar winner has decided to put his career on the backburner. But Gossip Cop can explain how this report is provably false.

The cover of New Zealand’s Woman’s Weekly announces, “George Reveals: Why I Quit!” Inside the issue, the headline for this untrue article declares, “Twin Transformation: Why George Is Kissing Hollywood Goodbye.” The premise is that Clooney is “focusing on his most important role ever,” that as dad to the son and daughter he shares with wife Amal, instead of Hollywood projects.

According to the magazine, “the joys and challenges of fatherhood” are “why he recently pulled out of starring in Hulu’s ‘Catch-22’ series.” A so-called “friend” is quoted as saying, “He knows he’s getting older, and he needs to be sure he’s healthy for his twins. He wants to conserve his energy and stepping back from that project is part of that.” While Clooney is indeed a devoted dad, these contentions are factually inaccurate.

The actor is still starring in the “Catch-22” adaptation. As Deadline reported in April, Clooney has switched roles, with Kyle Chandler taking on his original character as he moves to a smaller part. And this decision was not made because the iconic star decided to spend at time at home with his kids. Rather, the trade publication noted, he decided to change roles to “give him more time to focus on his directing and producing duties.”

Yes, Clooney is both the co-director and the executive producer of Hulu’s limited series, as announced months ago, yet the tabloid’s story doesn’t even mention that. Instead, it wrongly makes it seem like he has abandoned the project entirely. On the contrary, just over a week ago Clooney was seen scouting locations for “Catch-22” in Italy. He is still fully involved with the show, both behind and in front of the camera, despite the allegations from this misguided report.

This narrative, however, seems to be a popular one. Both before and after the twins were born nearly a year ago, it was wrongly alleged Clooney was retiring from acting. More recently, this past January Star claimed Clooney was quitting Hollywood to become a London stage actor. A rep for the actor confirmed to Gossip Cop he had no such plans, and to date, he’s yet to sign on to any play on the West End. And last fall, Clooney addressed stepping back from acting, but explained he was simply being choosy with his parts, not giving it up altogether. “Look, if somebody’s got Paul Newman in The Verdict, I’d jump,” he said in an interview.

In sum, Clooney has not “pulled out” of “Catch-22,” but simply transitioned to a different character. He did so not to become a stay-at-home dad, but so he could have more time for his directing and producing responsibilities. He is also on the record expressing interest in starring in new movies if the part is right. As such, Gossip Cop has determined this article about “quitting” is false.