PARIS — Call them Monsieur and Madame Clooney.
The French government states that George Clooneyhis wife Amal And their twins Ella and Alexander received French citizenship.
The naturalization of the Kentucky-born “Ocean's” heist star and his family was announced last weekend in the Journal Officiel, which publishes French government regulations.
The government notice indicated that human rights lawyer Amal Clooney had been naturalized under her maiden name, Amal Alamuddin. It is also noted that George Clooney's middle name is Timothy.
The couple purchased an estate in France in 2021. In an interview with Esquire in October, Clooney described his “farm in France” as his primary residence, a decision the 64-year-old actor and his 47-year-old wife made with their children in mind.
“I was worried about raising our kids in Los Angeles, in the Hollywood culture,” he told the magazine. “I don't want them walking around worrying about the paparazzi. I don't want them to be compared to somebody else's famous kids.”
Growing up out of the spotlight in France, “they don't use iPads, you know?” – he said. “They have dinner with adults and they have to take the dishes away. They have a much better life.”
Representatives for George Clooney did not respond to The Associated Press' request for comment Monday. The French government's Interior Ministry also did not immediately respond to questions from the AP on Tuesday about Clooney's new citizenship.
It is unclear whether Clooney has retained his American citizenship. Amal Clooney was born in Lebanon and raised in the UK. 8-year-old twins were born in London.
In recent media interviews when he was promoting “Jay Kelly” Clooney said he is trying to learn French using a language learning app, but it remains “horrible, terrible.” He said that his wife and children speak the language perfectly.
“They speak French in front of me so they can say terrible things about me to my face, but I don’t know,” he joked, referring to the French language. TV company Kanal+.
French media reported that the Clooneys live part-time in their luxury 18th-century villa near the southern French town of Brignoles, where they can keep a low profile and their children are protected from unauthorized photography by French privacy laws.
Brignoles Mayor Didier Brémont told broadcaster BFMTV on Tuesday that the Clooneys are “a very simple and very approachable family” and noted that the actors go shopping in the city and attended the opening of a cinema. Their decision to become French citizens showed “his love for our country,” the mayor said.
“He wants to live a normal life here, and that's what he's trying to do,” he said.
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Associated Press journalists Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Maria Sherman in New York contributed to this report.
