George Clooney used his Golden Lion acceptance speech to call out 'authoritarians'
George Clooney used his Golden Lion acceptance speech to call out "authoritarians".
George Clooney has blasted "people who peddle in fear" in a defiant speech at Venice Film Festival.
The 65-year-old actor received the prestigious Golden Lion award for Lifetime Achievement during the event's opening night ceremony on Wednesday (02.09.26), and he used his platform to discuss the importance of unity, art and free speech.
He said: "We’re living through a moment in time where people in charge, the people with the most money, are telling us to fear one another.
"But we know better than that, don’t we? Because history does teach us a lesson. It teaches us something.
"The first people that authoritarians tried to shut down are not politicians. They’re journalists who ask questions.
"They’re the artists who refuse simple answers; the filmmakers, writers, actors, and musicians who insist that someone you never met is deserving of your empathy.
“Stories are always dangerous to people who peddle in fear, the people who are afraid of books and music and stories are never the heroes in history."
He argued that while movies don't "stop wars", "lower inflation" or "fix elections", they can still achieve "something remarkable".
He added: "They remind us that a stranger is never a stranger, and that he might just be the hero in somebody else’s story.
“I am appreciative of all of you reminding me that although none of us are going to get out of this alive, with determination and with love and with respect as a society, we might just somehow get out of it intact.”
George's Jay Kelly co-star Laura Dern introduced him at the special event, and read out notes from friends like his agent Bryan Lourd, Brad Pitt, Adam Sandler, Steven Soderbegh, Alexander Payne, and Noah Baumbach.
Earlier in his speech, George was in good spirits as he joked about the award itself.
He teased: "When they tell you that you’re gonna be getting a Lifetime Achievement Award, there are really only two things that come to mind.
“The first is that, ‘What an incredible honour this is.’
"Then the second is, ‘Do they know something that I don’t? You’ve been talking to my doctors, have you?’”
George paid tribute to his wife Amal, 48, as he said he was "at a loss for words to describe" his love and pride for her.
He quipped that he's proud of "at least one of" their nine-year-old twins Ella and Alexander, and added: “By the way, my two kids are the only two people that thought I was good in Batman!"
