George Clooney Declares He Is No Longer “Kissing Girls” in Movies

George Clooney is often hailed as a Hollywood heartthrob, having starred in a string of romcoms throughout his career, which cemented his status as a charismatic leading man. His on-screen romances have involved smooches with the likes of Julia Roberts in Ocean’s Eleven, Jennifer Lopez in Out of Sight, and Michelle Pfeiffer in One Fine Day, but the actor – who is now 64 years of age – has decided to close this chapter of his career. He recently revealed that he is no longer interested in “kissing girls” in movies and said that he reached the decision after having a conversation with his wife, Amal Clooney, about his advancing years.

Clooney announced he would be stepping away from romantic roles during an interview with the Daily Mail, saying that he had a change of heart on the type of projects he wants to take on when he turned 60. He admitted that kissing scenes no longer felt right for him and that his days as a cinema Lothario are over. Instead, he wants to follow the path of another Hollywood icon, who famously opted out of getting embroiled in physical intimacy on-screen out of respect for his marriage. “I’ve been trying to go the route Paul Newman did — ‘Okay, well, I’m not kissing a girl anymore,'” he asserted before explaining the reason for his new stance:

“When I turned 60, I had a conversation with my wife. I said, ‘Look, I can still play basketball with the boys. I play with 25-year-old guys. I can still hang, I’m in shape. But in 25 years, I’m 85 years old. It doesn’t matter how many granola bars you eat, that’s a real number.'”

By the sounds of it, Clooney ruled out romantic roles a while ago, but he is keen to underscore his position in case anyone missed the memo. He told 60 Minutes back in March that he feels too old to compete with younger actors and would prefer to switch to more age-appropriate roles. “I’m 63 years old. I’m not trying to compete with 25-year-old leading men,” he stated. “That’s not my job. I’m not doing romantic films anymore.” His graceful acceptance of aging was met with praise from fans at the time, as many lauded the move as a natural progression for his career and one that might allow him to further showcase his versatility as an actor.