George Clooney Says He Turned Down $35 Million for One Day's Work

George Clooney has said he once turned down $35 million for one day's work on an airline commercial after discussing the possibility with his wife, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney.

The actor and director told the story in an interview with The Guardian, published on Friday, where he also discussed the new movie he's directed starring Ben Affleck.

The former ER star said the movie, The Tender Bar, is a "gentle" film that audiences in the U.S. may enjoy after several years of "hate and anger" - a likely reference to former President Donald Trump.

The Guardian's Hadley Freeman asked Clooney if he ever thinks he has "enough money now."

"Well, yeah. I was offered $35m for one day's work for an airline commercial, but I talked to Amal about it and we decided it's not worth it," Clooney said.

"It was [associated with] a country that, although it's an ally, is questionable at times, and so I thought: 'Well, if it takes a minute's sleep away from me, it's not worth it,'" he added.

Clooney didn't name the country or the airline involved.

He also discussed directing the new movie, which is not a political film but a coming of age story starring Affleck. The veteran actor did appear to make reference to Trump when speaking about The Tender Bar, however.

"The whole country, for the last five years, has been engaged in hate and anger, and I've been part of it at times," Clooney said.

"I've been angry, and this was such a kind story. It's such a gentle film, and I wanted to be part of that, and I thought maybe an audience would want to be part of a gentle experience," he added.

Clooney also discussed the fact that he has taken fewer acting roles recently. While he has directed The Tender Bar, he doesn't appear on screen.

"In general, there just aren't that many great parts – and, look, I don't have to act. My wife and I had this conversation when I turned 60 this summer," he said.

"I said: 'I can still bounce around pretty good, and we both love what we do. But we gotta make sure we don't book ourselves silly.' So, part of it is just us making sure we live our lives," Clooney added.

Clooney told the BBC in October that he had no desire to run for political office himself while he also addressed President Joe Biden's low approval rating, suggesting the president was dealing with the aftermath of the Trump administration.

"It's like taking a battered child and thinking everything's going to be OK his first day in school," Clooney said. "There's a lot of things that have to be repaired, there's a lot of healing that has to happen, and it's going to take time."

The actor also said that Trump was "just this knucklehead."

I knew him before he was a president. He was just a guy who was chasing girls. Every time you went out he'd be like, 'What's the name of that girl?' That's all he was," Clooney added.