George Clooney speaks French at 2026 Golden Globes after gaining French citizenship, says Los Angeles is still ‘home’

Stepping onto the stage at the 83rd annual Golden Globe Awards, George Clooney greeted the audience in French, opening his presentation with a nod to the country that has recently become home in a more official way.

Clooney, 64, appeared at the Beverly Hilton alongside longtime friend and Ocean’s Eleven costar Don Cheadle, turning the moment into a mix of lighthearted banter, industry celebration, and a subtle acknowledgment of a headline that has followed him for weeks.

“Bonsoir, mes amis,” Clooney said to the room, smiling as the crowd reacted. “C’est un honneur d’être ici.” The brief French introduction marked Clooney’s first public test of the language since he, his wife Amal, and their 8-year-old twins, Alexander and Ella, were granted French citizenship.

The news, confirmed through a naturalization decree published in France’s Journal officiel, drew international attention late last year. The Golden Globes appearance reunited Clooney with Cheadle, 61, who leaned into the multilingual moment by offering his own “bonsoir” as he joined Clooney onstage.

The two have shared a screen for decades, most memorably in Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy, and their chemistry played easily to the crowd. Cheadle quickly shifted gears, teasing Clooney about his earlier loss in the Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture Comedy category.

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Clooney, nominated for ‘Jay Kelly,’ had been beaten out by ‘Marty Supreme’ star Timothée Chalamet. “We’re all winners here,” Clooney protested. “Not really — you aren’t,” Cheadle shot back, drawing laughter from the audience.

The pair then presented the award for Best Motion Picture – Drama, which went to Chloé Zhao’s ‘Hamnet,’ closing out their segment on a celebratory note. While Clooney’s Golden Globes appearance stayed playful, his recent French citizenship has carried more serious undertones.

The announcement sparked a range of reactions, including a pointed response from President Donald Trump. In a Dec. 31 post on Truth Social, Trump criticized the Clooneys and France’s immigration policies.

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“Good News! George and Amal Clooney, two of the worst political prognosticators of all time, have officially become citizens of France which is, sadly, in the midst of a major crime problem because of their absolutely horrendous handling of immigration, much like we had under Sleepy Joe Biden,” he wrote.

Clooney responded days later with a statement of his own, leaning into the political moment. “I totally agree with the current president. We have to make America great again. We’ll start in November,” he said, referencing the upcoming midterm elections.

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French officials, meanwhile, publicly defended the decision to grant the family citizenship. The French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs said in a Dec. 31 statement, “We are delighted, like many French people, to welcome George and Amal Clooney into the national community.”

The Associated Press later reported that the government cited the couple’s contributions to France’s international influence and cultural outreach. Officials pointed to Clooney’s global profile in cinema and to Amal Clooney’s work as a human rights lawyer with academic institutions and international organizations in France.

“They maintain strong personal, professional and family ties with our country,” the ministry said. “Like many French citizens, we are delighted to welcome Georges and Amal Clooney into the national community.”

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The Clooneys have been living in France since purchasing an estate there in 2021, a move that Clooney has framed primarily as a family decision. In an October interview with Esquire, he spoke candidly about life on their French farm and the contrast with Hollywood.

“We live on a farm in France,” Clooney said. “A good portion of my life growing up was on a farm, and as a kid, I hated the whole idea of it.”

His perspective has shifted watching his children grow up there. “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.”

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Clooney has also joked about being the least fluent member of his household. While promoting ‘Jay Kelly’ in French media interviews, he admitted that his own language skills lag behind those of his wife and children.

“They speak French in front of me so that they can say terrible things about me to my face and I don’t know,” he joked to Canal+. Despite the French citizenship and increased time abroad, Clooney has been clear that he is not cutting ties with Los Angeles.

In a recent Los Angeles Times interview, he emphasized that the family still keeps an apartment in the city and that L.A. remains central to his personal and professional life. “There’s an anonymity living there,” he said of France.

“That’s good for the kids. But L.A.’s still a big part of home for me too because it’s where I found success. It’s where I made all my friends. I know every back street. I know all the shortcuts.”