George Clooney, his wife Amal, and their 8-year-old twins, Ella and Alexander, have been granted French citizenship, as confirmed by an official naturalization decree published in December 2025. The family primarily resides on a rural farm estate in Provence, France, purchased in 2021. The actor says he moved to escape Hollywood’s intense culture, paparazzi scrutiny, and the pressures of fame.
In interviews, Clooney emphasized a grounded upbringing for his children, away from screens, with chores and family dinners, citing France’s indifference to celebrity and strong child privacy laws as key reasons for the move. Some critics have drawn attention to the movie star’s rabid anti-Trump politics and wondered if he fled the country for political reasons.
Explaining his reasons for the move, the Hollywood A-lister said, “You know, we live on a farm in France. A good portion of my life growing up was on a farm, and as a kid I hated the whole idea of it. But now, for them, it’s like – they’re not on their iPads, you know? They have dinner with grown-ups and have to take their dishes in. They have a much better life.”
“I was worried about raising our kids in L.A., in the culture of Hollywood. I felt like they were never going to get a fair shake at life,” he said, “France – they kind of don’t give a s— about fame. I don’t want them to be walking around worried about paparazzi. I don’t want them being compared to somebody else’s famous kids.”
Explaining that a significant reason for the move was the safety of his children, Clooney added more details about his plans. “Here, they don’t take photos of kids. There aren’t any paparazzi hidden at the school gates. That’s No. 1 for us,” the actor noted.
Additionally, the movie star said that his farm was a way to connect with his roots, saying, “Growing up in Kentucky, all I wanted to do was get away from a farm, get away from that life. Now I find myself back in that life. I drive a tractor and all those things. It’s the best chance of a normal life.”
For context, Clooney has made several cartoonish remarks about the president. During the first trump administration, the actor infamously quipped, “He’s just an opportunist. Now he’s a fascist; a xenophobic fascist.”
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Speaking about recent drama concerning ABC and CBS settling defamation lawsuits filed by President Donald Trump, the actor whined, “If CBS and ABC had challenged those lawsuits and said, ‘Go f— yourself,’ we wouldn’t be where we are in the country. That’s simply the truth.”
Still not done, he complained, “Bari Weiss is dismantling CBS News as we speak.” Additionally, he claimed, “I’m worried about how we inform ourselves and how we’re going to discern reality without a functioning press. It’s a very trying time. It can depress you or make you very angry. But you have to find the most positive way through it. You have to put your head down and keep moving forward because quitting isn’t an option.”