George Clooney breaks silence on Paul Newman's warning about fame

George Clooney reflected on the advice he received from Paul Newman, who passed away in 2008.

In an interview with The New York Times, Clooney and his Jay Kelly costar recalled their first encounter on the Warner Bros. lot in 90s.

At the time, the Wolfs actor was starring on ER, while Newman was shooting Message in a Battle. Clooney approached Newman and introduced himself.

The actor said to Sandler, "I’m not as good at getting out as you are. I have a tendency to go, ‘If I go out, that’s going to be an extra hour of talking to people.’ Paul Newman actually talked about this to me."

"When I first met him, he was at Warner Bros. doing Message in a Bottle, and I was on ER. Newman was sitting outside smoking a cigarette, so I pulled up in the golf cart and was like, ‘Hey, just wanted to say hi,'" he recalled.

Adding, "Everybody who came by on golf carts was like, ‘Hey, George.’ ‘George!’ So bit by bit, he figured out I was successful in the industry in some way."

He went on to share, "Then he goes, ‘George, don’t let them keep you at home.'"

"He meant very specifically that tendency to isolate because you’re trying to hold onto some privacy. My tendency at that moment was to stay in, and hearing Newman say that, it made sense immediately," Clooney added.

George Clooney has long admired Paul Newman, calling him one of the biggest influences despite never sharing screen.