George Clooney rebukes ‘authoritarians’ in Venice Golden Lion speech

George Clooney used his acceptance speech for a Golden Lion for lifetime achievement at the Venice Film Festival on Wednesday to warn against political fear-mongering, telling the crowd that “stories are always dangerous to people who peddle in fear.”

Mr. Clooney, accepting the honor at the 83rd edition of the festival, argued that authoritarian movements target storytellers before politicians. 

“We’re living through a moment in time where the people in charge and people with the most money are telling us to fear one another,” Mr. Clooney said. “But we know better than that, don’t we? Because history does teach us a lesson.”

“The first people that authoritarians try to shut down are not politicians,” he continued. “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.”

Reflecting on a career he called a “series of happy accidents,” Mr. Clooney said films cannot fix the world’s practical problems but can remind audiences that people are less different than they are told. His wife, Amal Clooney, was in the audience; he thanked her for her support before closing with a self-deprecating joke about his much-maligned turn in “Batman & Robin.”

Earlier Wednesday, at a press conference tied to the proposed Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger, Mr. Clooney declined to endorse Paramount’s proposed takeover, saying “I don’t see how the merger financially ends up making sense.” He also voiced support for actor Mark Ruffalo’s right to criticize the transaction publicly.

Asked about the state of American politics, Mr. Clooney offered reporters a word: kakistocracy, meaning rule by the least qualified. “I think maybe we have a kakistocracy right now, but we’ll get through it,” he said, pointing to November’s elections as a “check and balance” and expressing hope for a “restoration of some normalcy” by 2028.

Mr. Clooney is no stranger to Venice — he was married there in 2014 and has premiered films at the festival in each of the past two years. He is scheduled to deliver a masterclass on his career Thursday.