Jay Kelly stars George Clooney and Adam Sandler reveal how age has changed ambitions and talk correcting past mistakes

This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.

Both fixtures on the Hollywood A-list, George Clooney and Adam Sandler have careers going back to the late 1980s.

With that wealth of experience, it’s no wonder Clooney, 64, was cast as the titular movie star in Noah Baumbach’s sparkling new comedy-drama Jay Kelly, while Sandler, 59, plays his long-suffering manager, Ron, for ever trailing after him.

They’re an unlikely pair, but they make quite the double act…

George, your character Jay Kelly is a famous movie star. In your own life, did you ever consider if fame was really for you?

GEORGE CLOONEY: I don’t think you have the luxury of saying, “Well, I don’t know if I’m really up for fame” when you’re a young actor just trying to get a job. You’re not really thinking about fame.

Have your careers and ambition changed over the years?

GEORGE: I have eight-year-old kids, so I had to change my career choices. Directing means 10 months on the road, so it’s not something I can do any more, because I want to be home.

ADAM SANDLER: You’ll be back in 10 years!

GEORGE: It’s a lot easier to make those decisions later in life when you’ve succeeded. It’s a lot harder for people who have to make those decisions when they’re trying to make their mark. There’s certainly decisions that are made easier when you’re 64 and too old to be having young children.

Adam, how have you juggled the work/life balance?

ADAM: I was raised in a family-comes-first home. I have an enormous amount of guilt if I’m not with my family. If I’m away too long, I’m feeling it the whole time. So, prioritising family came easy.

You’re familiar faces – how do you cope with being recognised?

ADAM: I jump in there. I live my life and don’t really change much. It’s a different energy when you walk into a restaurant, everybody knows you and says hello. But then that calms down, and life feels good.

Which of each other’s performances have you admired?

GEORGE: I was so blown away by The Meyerowitz Stories. There’s a gentleness and a vulnerability that’s very hard to do as an actor… you stole that show.

ADAM: How about I just talk about George’s play [Good Night, and Good Luck]? What he did setting records all over Broadway... I was baffled with how steady, how charismatic you were, and how deep the performance was.

You’ve both starred in comedy and intense dramas. Which is harder to play?

GEORGE: Comedy feels infinitely more stressful. I feel like there’s more pressure on you. Adam, do people come up to you all the time and go, “Be funny?”

ADAM: That has happened. I don’t usually rise to the occasion.

GEORGE: Well, you’re not right now, that’s for sure. You’re bringing us all down!

Jay Kelly had cheesecake as one of the demands on his rider. What’s on yours?

ADAM: In the early days, if it was hot, I would go, “Oh God, why is it so damn hot in here?” Somehow that later became “Adam likes it cold”. After that, I would walk onto set and it’s freezing and when I asked, “Why is it like this?” They would say, “You like this, right?”

I said it one time! That’s my cheesecake.

Jay is forced to come face-to-face with the people he has wronged from his past. Do you believe it’s ever possible to fix what’s behind us?

GEORGE: I would hope so, because I’ve often tried to repair things. I’ve come to people and said, “I didn’t handle that very well.” You hope to be able to do that, but sometimes maybe not.

Are you still in touch with old friends?

GEORGE: Thom Mathews [a US actor]... we went on the same auditions all the time. If I didn’t get it, I wanted him to get it. So there was a great camaraderie. He and I have been friends for over 40 years.

ADAM: I’m in touch with a lot of people from the old days, but Jay Kelly definitely made me feel for the people who have been with me this whole time. When I had a movie open up at the box office and it did well, I’d call the guys who work with me, and they were feeling exactly what I was feeling. This excitement. And then when I had ones where I’d get punched in the face, they were feeling that too.

Jay and Ron have an interesting relationship – how do you get on with your own agents?

GEORGE: My agent is a guy named Bryan Lourd, who’s one of the great guys in the business. He’s also one of my best friends.

He and I have four schools that we put together across the country, getting young people who don’t look male and white working in editing and visual effects. So my relationship with him is nothing but admiration and respect. And I’m really happy to say that because I’ve been in situations with agents 25 years ago where none of that was true.

ADAM I’ve had several over the years. I stole from all of them [to play Ron]. Man, it’s a selfless job. You’re all about the client, and I enjoyed being that man for George. But not in real life!

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