Hollywood star George Clooney has issued a sharp rebuke to director Quentin Tarantino, labelling his recent public criticism of fellow actors as needless cruelty. The remarks came during the AARP's Movies for Grownups awards ceremony in Los Angeles on 10 January.
Clooney's Defence of Tarantino's Targets
While promoting his new film, Noah Baumbach's Jay Kelly, Clooney made a pointed declaration of support for the three performers Tarantino had disparaged. "By the way, Paul Dano and Owen Wilson and Matthew Lillard, I would be honoured to work with those actors. Honoured," Clooney stated emphatically.
He contrasted his current project, which he described as being "made by people who love actors," with the public denigration coming from the Pulp Fiction director. "I don't enjoy watching people be cruel," Clooney added, before delivering his broader verdict on the current climate. "We are living in a time of cruelty. We don't need to be adding to it."
The Source of the Feud: Tarantino's Podcast Comments
The controversy stems from an appearance Tarantino made on Bret Easton Ellis's podcast in December 2025. While discussing Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood, Tarantino asserted the film was marred by a "big, giant flaw" – Paul Dano's performance.
"[It] would stand a good chance at being No 1 or 2 if it didn't have a big, giant flaw in it … and the flaw is Paul Dano," Tarantino said. He dismissed Dano as "weak sauce" and "the weakest fucking actor in the Screen Actors Guild," adding he had never enjoyed his work. He extended his criticism, stating plainly, "I don't care for Owen Wilson, and I don't care for Matthew Lillard."
Fallout and Industry Reactions
The comments sparked immediate backlash. Dano received support from high-profile figures including his There Will Be Blood co-star Daniel Day-Lewis, director Matt Reeves, and Ben Stiller. Matthew Lillard addressed the criticism days later at a fan convention, calling the experience hurtful and humbling.
"It fucking sucks," Lillard said. "And you wouldn't say that to Tom Cruise. You wouldn't say that to somebody who's a top-line actor in Hollywood." Owen Wilson has not publicly commented on the incident.
This is not the first friction between Clooney and Tarantino, who co-starred in 1996's From Dusk Till Dawn but have not collaborated since. Last year, Clooney expressed irritation after Tarantino suggested in an interview that he was not a major movie star.
The public defence from a figure of Clooney's stature highlights a growing debate about professionalism and public discourse within the film industry, with many rallying against what they see as unnecessarily personal and destructive criticism.
