Home ›› 13 Oct 2021 ›› Show Biz
George Clooney is back behind the camera for ‘The Tender Bar’, a coming-of-age story starring Ben Affleck and Tye Sheridan.
The feature film, Clooney’s eighth as director, is based on the memoirs of American author J.R. Moehringer, who found substitutes for his absent father at his uncle Charlie’s New York pub.
“It was nice. It was gentle. It was kind, and I don’t often do films like that,” Clooney told Reuters on Sunday, at the London Film Festival premiere of the drama.
“I wanted to have something that didn’t necessarily reflect all the things that we’ve been going through. I wanted to have something that reminded us that we all kind of like each other in general.”
The film sees JR, played by Sheridan and newcomer Daniel Ranieri, being taken under the wing of his barman uncle played by Affleck, and finding shelter in his establishment. Influenced by the stories told by the bar’s colorful cast of patrons, JR matures from an insecure boy to an acclaimed writer.
Casting his friend Affleck as the larger-than-life Uncle Charlie was a no-brainer, said Clooney.
“This character is really smart and he’s a bit of a goofball and Ben is all of those things.”
Clooney said turning 60 in May had made him re-evaluate his priorities.
Released in U.S. cinemas on December 17, ‘The Tender Bar’ starts streaming globally on Amazon Prime from January 7, 2022.
