George Clooney Decries Political Violence After Trump Attack at White House Correspondents’ Dinner: ‘There’s a Struggle That Has to Be Won Against Hatred’

Home Film News Apr 27, 2026 7:09pm PT George Clooney Decries Political Violence After Trump Attack at White House Correspondents’ Dinner: ‘There’s a Struggle That Has to Be Won Against Hatred’ By Rebecca Rubin, Brent Lang Getty Images for FLC George Clooney took a moment to get political while he was honored with Film at Lincoln Center’s 51st annual Chaplin award. Clooney, who has long been one of Hollywood’s most outspoken critics of Donald Trump, struck a somber tone as he addressed these politically charged times. Over the weekend, the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was evacuated after a gunman tried to storm the annual gala fundraiser event. Related Stories Shakira Crew Member Killed in Stage Accident Setting Up for Brazil Concert “I can’t be here on a night like tonight and just ignore everything that’s going on in the world,” an emotional Clooney said from the stage. “I disagree with everything that this administration stands for, but there’s no place for the kind of violence we saw two nights ago in Washington, D.C. Nor is there a room for this kind of violence in Minnesota with Alex Pretti or Renée Good.” blogherads.adq.push(function () { blogherads .defineSlot( 'medrec', 'gpt-variety-article-mid-article-uid0' ) .setTargeting( 'pos', ["mid-article1","mid-articleX","mid","mid-article"] ) .setTargeting( 'viewable', 'yes' ) .setSubAdUnitPath("ros\/mid-article") .addSize([[300,250],[2,2],[300,251],[2,4],[4,2],[320,480],[620,366]]) .setClsOptimization("minsize") ; }); Popular on Variety if ( !window.pmc.harmony?.isEventAdScheduledTime() ) { pmcCnx.cmd.push(function() { pmcCnx({ settings: { plugins: { pmcAtlasMG: { iabPlcmt: 2, } } }, playerId: 'fdaee7b3-292f-4a85-89bb-29a56b567de3', playlistId: '073c6e70-0010-4b87-92d0-d891f87f5cd8', }).render("connatix_contextual_player_div"); }); } else { // This should only be get called when page cache is not cleared and it's event time. window.pmc.harmony?.switchToHarmonyPlayer(); } Clooney wasn’t explicitly critical of Trump, but he alluded to the extremism that critics argue has propelled the President’s ascent. “It seems to me there’s a struggle that has to be won against hatred and corruption and cruelty and violence,” Clooney continued. “It’s a struggle for the very soul of this republic because to foment hate and violence is to inherit the wind.” Clooney made a push for unity, concluding that “the question is simply, what are we, as citizens of this great country, to do? And it is that answer in all of us, left, right and center, to build a more perfect union, heal our wounds and begin to truly make America great again.” Sam Rockwell, Stephen Colbert, Julianna Margulies and John Turturro were among the presenters of the honor, held each year at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. blogherads.adq.push(function () { blogherads .defineSlot( 'medrec', 'gpt-dsk-tab-mid-article2-uid1' ) .setTargeting( 'pos', ["mid","mid-article2","mid-articleX"] ) .setTargeting( 'viewable', 'yes' ) .setSubAdUnitPath("ros\/mid-article2") .addSize([[320,480],[300,250],[300,251],[2,4],[4,2],[620,366]]) .setClsOptimization("minsize") ; }); Clooney was honored for his contributions to film and television, starting with his breakout role on “ER” and continuing with films such as “Syriana,” “O Brother Where Art Thou,” “Up in the Air” and the “Oceans” trilogy. His latest movie, “Jay Kelly,” played at the New York Film Festival, which is hosted by Film at Lincoln Center. In a lighter moment, Clooney referenced “Jay…

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