George Clooney was born with a leg up. There’s no point in denying his good looks and charisma, which were more than enough to make him a TV star. What made him a matinee idol of the kind we rarely see anymore, though, was his ability to break out of the shell that his good looks could have boxed him into. George Clooney can be whatever he needs to be. He can be a sexy, sly criminal, a lawyer who’s dead inside, or a bumbling oaf trying to find his way home.
All of these roles work on Clooney, because he fits well in comedies and dramas. The peak of Clooney’s powers is likely behind us at this point, but as he proved in his more recent movies, he remains one of the most charismatic leading men that Hollywood has. These are the best George Clooney movies that showcase what he can do, and they’re just as varied as his whole career has been.
Michael Clayton (2007)
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
Solaris (2002)
Ocean's Eleven (2001)
Up in the Air (2009)
Hail, Caesar! (2016)
Out of Sight (1998)
The Descendants (2011)
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)
Three Kings (1999)
Gravity (2013)
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