George Clooney expressed support for actors Paul Dano, Owen Wilson, and Matthew Lillard during his acceptance speech at the AARP Movies for Grownups Awards. He responded to Quentin Tarantino's recent criticisms of the performers, emphasizing a time of cruelty in the industry. Clooney highlighted his affinity for actors while receiving the best actor award for his role in 'Jay Kelly.'
At the AARP Movies for Grownups Awards on Saturday, George Clooney accepted the best actor award for his performance in 'Jay Kelly' and took the opportunity to stand up for fellow actors targeted by Quentin Tarantino's remarks. A month earlier, in December 2025, the 'Pulp Fiction' director had harshly criticized Paul Dano, calling him "the weakest fucking actor in SAG," expressed that he "can’t stand" Owen Wilson, and stated he doesn’t care for Matthew Lillard.
"By the way, Paul Dano and Owen Wilson and Matthew Lillard, I would be honored to work with those actors. Honored," Clooney said during his speech. He described 'Jay Kelly' as "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."
Clooney continued, "We are living in a time of cruelty. We don’t need to be adding to it." This comes after Tarantino's 2024 comment dismissing Clooney as not a movie star, despite their collaboration in the 1996 Robert Rodriguez film 'From Dusk Till Dawn.' In a GQ interview, Clooney admitted, "Quentin said some shit about me recently, so I’m a little irritated by him," recounting how Tarantino excluded him from a list of movie stars.
During the acceptance, Clooney praised director Noah Baumbach's script as "beautiful" and expressed surprise at landing the role. He also noted reuniting with Laura Dern, from his first film 'Grizzly II: Revenge.' His former 'ER' co-star Noah Wyle presented the award, and Clooney later joked about nominating Wyle for AARP's "sexiest man still alive" issue.
The awards celebrate entertainment for those 50 and up and will air on PBS's 'Great Performances' on February 22.