George Clooney Talks How Marriage Made His Life ‘Full’ & Why He Feared He Might Never See His Kids Again
Veteran US actor and dad-of-twins, George Clooney has opened up about the scary motorcycle crash which almost claimed his life in Italy. The 59-year-old actor has been named GQ‘s Icon of the Year and in the magazine’s cover story, he reflects on his marital life as well as how the accident in 2018 could have robbed him of the joys of seeing his children grow.
“He literally turned directly in front of me,”
the actor says of the other vehicle involved in the accident.
“I launched. I go head over heels. But I landed on my hands and knees. If you did it 100 times, maybe once you land on your hands and knees, and any other version you land, you’re toast. It knocked me out of my shoes.”
READ ALSO: George Clooney Reveals How he Met His Wife, Amal, Without Leaving His Home
The father of two goes on to describe his initial thoughts, saying,
“When I hit the ground, my mouth — I thought all my teeth were broken out. But it was glass from the windshield.”
When asked if he had any thoughts while flying through the air during the crash, he replies,
“You know, not really. Although my kids were like a year old, and mostly it was just the thought that this was it and that I wasn’t gonna see them again.”
George is dad to twins, Alexander and Ella, 3, with his wife, Amal Clooney, has since been forbidden from riding motorcycles by his partner.
The actor also spoke about lying on the ground in the arms of his friend Grant Heslov, and thinking those were his final moments.
“I was on the ground. I was really screaming. Like, really screaming. And Grant came back, and he was screaming at everybody to get an ambulance, and I remember everybody got out of their cars, they stopped in the middle of the street, and all these people came and stood over me and just pulled out their phones and started taking video,”
he shares.
“It’s a funny thing. I’m not a cynical guy, and I really tend to look at life and try to find the good in everything. But I’ll never forget the moment that what I thought might be my last few moments was for everyone else a piece of entertainment.”
In GQ‘s cover story, George also opens up about his love for Amal, saying when they met he thought his life was “full.”
“I didn’t know how un-full it was until I met Amal. And then everything changed,” he says. “And I was like, ‘Oh, actually, this has been a huge empty space.’”
He adds that marriage has changed him.
“I’d never been in the position where someone else’s life was infinitely more important to me than my own,”
George admits.
“You know? And then tack on two more individuals, who are small and have to be fed.…”
The award-winning actor also disclosed that he’s spending much time at home looking after his two children, especially his son, Alexander, who is asthmatic and therefore at risk if he ever were to get Coronavirus.
“I cut my own hair and I cut my kids’ hair and I’m mopping it and vacuuming and doing the laundry and doing the dishes every day,”
he says.
“I feel like my mother in 1964. You know, I understand why she burned her bra.”
During the interview, the actor’s son adorably interrupted the virtual interview with GQ and stayed around for a minute to chat. Sadly, there is no footage of the cute moment, but interviewer Zach Baron described the sweet exchange between Clooney and his son.
“You’ve got chocolate on your face. Do you know that? What is that? Did you have chocolate?”
Clooney asked Alexander.
He also asked his son to say how old he was, and the toddler replied,
“Three. Because I got my birthday.”
Clooney also mentioned that Alexander speaks fluent Italian, and asked his son to say ‘It’s very hot today’ in the language.
“Molto caldo,”
his son replied.