George Clooney Reveals the Failure He Learned the Most from in His Life — and, Yes, It’s “That” Movie from the ’90s (Exclusive)
- - George Clooney Reveals the Failure He Learned the Most from in His Life — and, Yes, It’s “That” Movie from the ’90s (Exclusive)
Brian Anthony Hernandez, Alex CramerNovember 16, 2025 at 9:00 PM
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George Clooeny at the ‘Jay Kelly’ premiere in Los Angeles on Nov. 11, 2025 -
George Clooney revealed the failure he learned the most from in his career in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE
“You don't learn from succeeding — you learn from failing, and then you have to figure it out along the way,” the actor said
Clooney has routinely criticized the project he considers a failure
George Clooney still considers Batman & Robin to be a failure.
Speaking with PEOPLE and other media during a group interview at the Los Angeles premiere of his latest film, Jay Kelly, at the Egyptian Theatre on Nov. 11, the actor admitted that the 1997 movie was a lesson he learned the most from in his life.
“Batman & Robin! I learned a lot [from] that one,” Clooney, 64, said of the superhero film that was critically panned, earned 11 Razzie Awards nominations and currently holds a low review of 11% on Rotten Tomatoes.
He continued, "You don't learn from succeeding — you learn from failing, and then you have to figure it out along the way, so it’s helpful."
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Alicia Silverstone, George Clooney and Chris O’Donnell for ‘Batman & Robin’ (1997)
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The Gravity star has joined critics in panning his performance as Batman/Bruce Wayne and the Batman & Robin film over the years.
In 2019, Clooney admitted that the film was a "failure" and influenced the work he would choose to do in the years to come.
“I wasn’t good in it, it wasn’t a good film,” he told The Hollywood Reporter at the time. “What I learned from that failure was that I had to relearn how I was working. Now, I wasn’t just an actor getting a role, I was being held responsible for the film itself. So the next three films I did were Three Kings, Out of Sight and O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
He added, ”That was a very specific choice for me to find better projects.”
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George Clooney in ‘Jay Kelly’ (2025)
In 2021, Clooney said, per Variety, that his wife, Amal Clooney, "won’t let me watch" Batman & Robin.
The actor then quipped, "There are certain films I just go, ‘I want my wife to have some respect for me.' "
The couple are parents to 8-year-old twins, Alexander and Ella.
Years after Batman & Robin was released, Clooney would find critical success for 2005’s Syriana, which earned him the Oscar for Actor in a Supporting Role. In his acceptance speech, he gave a quick nod to his Batman role.
“It's a funny thing about winning an Academy Award, this will always be sort of synonymous with your name from here on in,” he said, before jokingly adding, “It will be: Oscar winner George Clooney, Sexiest Man Alive 1997, Batman, died today in a freak accident ..."
Jay Kelly — the Noah Baumbach-directed comedy drama, also starring Adam Sandler, Laura Dern, and Billy Crudup — is now playing in theaters.
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