John Krasinski Shared the Huge Lessons He Learned From George Clooney: ‘He Taught Me So Much’
John Krasinski has a number of impressive credits on his resume but back when he was just a TV star starting out with movie roles, he had a lot to learn. Luckily the actor had some amazing mentors to educate him, with George Clooney among one of the biggest A-listers who gave Krasinski advice that clearly stuck with him over the years.
Krasinski learned something huge from Clooney
In a 2016 interview with Sunday TODAY, Krasinski shared the advice that Clooney gave him about directing, something he implemented successfully when he directed the 2016 film The Hollars, A Quiet Place in 2018, and A Quiet Place II in 2020.
Krasinski co-starred with Clooney in the 2008 movie Leatherheads and he found that the legendary actor had plenty of words of wisdom to share with the up-and-comer.
“I’d say the thing I learned from him most was how to maintain a level of class and respect on a movie set like it would be in a classroom or in a workplace,” Krasinski said of Clooney. “It’s gotta be that we’re all humans, and we’re all doing something. There is never a moment where we’re not a family.”
Clooney shared directing advice too
In a 2016 interview on Larry King Now, Krasinski shared how much of an impact Clooney had on him when he directed the actor in Leatherheads. “The name of the game there is ‘just steal everything.’ I’ve stolen ideas and thoughts and moves from the directors that I’ve worked with. Certainly, George Clooney taught me so much,” Krasinski noted.
He continued, “One of the things I always remember he told me was — you can make a bad movie out of a good script, but you can never make a good movie out of a bad script, so always choose wisely.”
Clooney also taught Krasinski that making movies is a team effort. “And then the other thing he always told me was, you know, the best idea has to end up on screen,” he explained. “Doesn’t matter who said it. One of your actors or the guy who’s shutting down the studio at night. If it’s going to make the movie better, it has to go on screen. It’s a team sport,” he shared.
Krasinski got some amazing advice from Robin Williams
Krasinski also had the pleasure of working with the legendary Robin Williams on the 2007 film License to Wed and Williams imparted a piece of advice that Krasinski said had a huge impact on him.
“I remember he took me aside one day. And he said, ‘I think you’re gonna be in this business for a while. Don’t ever forget the responsibility you have to be the better person than anybody else on this set,’” Krasinski shared during his Sunday Today interview.
“Meaning, ‘You have a responsibility to be a leader, and to care about this movie and these people for everybody,'” he added.
“And I’ve taken it to heart every single day,” Krasinski said.
