George Clooney slams Quentin Tarantino over ‘cruel’ remarks, adding himself to the list of actors fighting back against the director.
Earlier this year, Quentin Tarantino called Paul Dano the “weakest f***king actor” in Paul Thomas Anderson’s acclaimed 2007 film There Will Be Blood, starring Daniel Day-Lewis, while ranking his favorite films of the 21st century.
During his ranking on The Bret Easton Ellis podcast, he branded Dano as “such a weak, weak, uninteresting guy,” adding, “I don’t care for him,” before also name-checking Wedding Crashers star Owen Wilson and Scooby-Doo actor Matthew Lillard as actors he doesn’t enjoy watching.
Clooney, 64, was named best actor at the AARP Movies for Grownups Awards for his role in Jay Kelly on January 10, and took a moment to shout out Paul Dano, Matthew Lillard, and Owen Wilson.
“By the way, Paul Dano, Owen Wilson and Matthew Lillard, I would be honored to work with those actors. Honored,” the actor said.
The star said that the movie Jay Kelly was “made by people who love actors — that’s an important part. People I’ve known most of my life… actually, most of them are actors. I have a great affinity [for them], and I don’t enjoy watching people be cruel.”
“We are living in a time of cruelty,” the star continued. “We don’t need to be adding to it.”
This isn’t the first time the actor made his feelings known about Tarantino. In 2024, Clooney said he was “a little irritated” with Tarantino after the director questioned the success of his film career.
While speaking with GQ alongside Brad Pitt, the actor said: “He did some interview where he was naming movie stars, and he was talking about you, and somebody else, and then this guy goes, ‘Well, what about George?’ He goes, ‘He’s not a movie star.’ And then he literally said something like, ‘Name me a movie since the millennium.'”
Clooney said, “‘Since the millennium?’ Thats king of my whole f***king career. So now I’m like, alright, dude, f*** off. I don’t mind giving him s***. He gave me s***.”
Tarantino's statement on Paul Dano is wrong on so many levels. He holds himself strong opposite a legend like DDL (dare I say better that Leo in Gangs of New York even) he crafts rich character but also two different characters. It's one of the great performances. It really is. pic.twitter.com/Huf4mblCld
— Sarah💫🌸 (@mademoisellee_s) December 2, 2025
Not only was it amazing to see a fellow actor come to Dano’s defense, but several fans also did. Many have gone to X to share their thoughts, with one fan saying, “Quentin Tarantino could not be more wrong about Paul Dano if he tried. I’m not here to ‘cancel’ Tarantino just because I think his opinion is incredibly stupid…”