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Disclosure: I was given an all-expense paid trip to the Los Angeles area by Disney in exchange for sharing my experience with all of you! ALL opinions shared are my own.

Photo Credit: Louise Bishop / Momstart.com

Last week I had the awesome opportunity to travel to Los Angeles, CA to experience Tomorrowland at Disneyland, Disney Archives, TCL Chinese Theater and interviewing the cast members and directors. One of the interviews that I was able to participate in was with George Clooney. In Tomorrowland, George plays “Frank Walker.” Check out the questions that we asked and George’s answers below.

Photo Credit: Louise Bishop / Momstart.com

When George arrived at the Montage Hotel where we were all waiting so patiently, we were ecstatic to meet him as he is such a legendary actor. He walked in our room smiling and ready to start this interview. Before we could start asking him questions, he asked how long we had been a group and what we did. It was so fun to hear him joke around with us and the conversation just flowed naturally. As soon as he said “I’m ready, fire away….” the questions started to come from us. Here are some of the questions and responses that we heard while interviewing George.

The message throughout Tomorrowland is all about, “Can we fix it?” Since you firmly believe in that with all your humanitarian work. Is that one of the things that drew you to the movie?

At first I wanted to work with Brad Bird. I don’t think he makes bad films, I love the kinds of films he makes. Then, when I read the screenplay, I thought, you know, what I love about it is that we sort of are inundated in our lives with lots of bad news. You turn on the television, it hurts, you know. The script said that your future isn’t just automatically inevitable and that you have to participate and you don’t have to just accept how it ends. I grew up in the early 60’s, an era where the individual actually had effect like the civil rights movement, the Vietnam movement, the women’s rights moments, and that stuff, and so I always felt like and believed that there was a version of it. I was raised that there was a version of this where you could affect the future, and you didn’t have to just accept it. The Russians weren’t gonna necessarily just blow us all up and the nuclear bombs. So I really loved the idea of hearing this again, this idea that it’s, we’re not just necessarily doomed, that there’s something that you can do about it if you pay attention and you, and, you know, and you work hard. And I liked it.

The answer that he provided above was phenomenal – the future is ours to make with it what we want, it isn’t always predetermined for us. What a fantastic message for our children– they need to imagine and make the future what they want it to be!

Was it fun or difficult to be working with contraptions and harnesses and all those things…?

You know, I’ve done it a few times, you know. In Gravity, I had to do it, and I’ve done it in a few films. I’m never particularly in love with it. Green screen is tricky ’cause you just have to sort of make things up. But, the thing about being an actor is you really don’t ever have to grow up, right? We’re still playing make believe. I’m 54 and I’m playing make-believe. So when they put you in a contraption, and say now you’re gonna fly, I mean, you’re still a 12 year old and you say really, ‘am I gonna fly from here to there? Oh yeah, let’s go, it’s fun’. I’ve always found that part to be magical, you know. I just wish the jet pack really worked. When I was growing up, it was the space race and it was everything you were eating, space food sticks and drinking Tang and, you know, I really thought by now we’d be riding around in Jetson cars……well, that’s what the Jetson’s told us. Well, they did tell us and I believed them, so when I see the jet pack, I’m like I want that thing to work by now, you know, but no such luck.

Almost every answer that George Clooney stated started off with a joke or had some funny part in it. Below is one of my favorite answers he gave:

What would you say that that would be one of the futuristic items or things that would be awesome to have?  

Let me put it to you this way.   So you’re at LAX. You get your bags. I’ve got to get to Studio City. It’s 4:30 on a Friday. It would be the greatest moment ever, just blasting right over all the traffic. I think it would be fantastic, although, you know, I don’t know that I want everybody to have one ’cause they’d just be circling my house.

The young kid that plays Frank Walker in the movie, did you have any say in who it would be? He looks like you, like his facial expressions, did he like study you?

No, they just went around, actually they did a little plastic surgery on him. Which seems, ah, a little rough, but yeah, you want to, it’s show biz. You want to be in show biz, we’re gonna have to reduce that nose. We’re gonna have to pin those ears. I’m sorry. No, you know, he was funny. I actually did, ’cause I never got to work with him obviously, because we were, you know, in different worlds as you know, completely different worlds, but he would walk by, I’d come over and I’d go, so you’re, ah, you’re me, right? He’s like, yup. Alright. Don’t screw it up. He was really sweet though. A really funny kid.

Photo Credit: Louise Bishop / Momstart.com

 What was your favorite scene in the movie?

Yeah, that’s a good question. It’s fun because, look, first let me start off by explaining to you how I came to this part, right? Brad and Damon called me and said ‘we’ve written a part for you in a movie.’ Since I’d been trying to work with Brad for a long time. I was like wow, that’s amazing. So, they send me the script and I open it up and the description of me is [Frank Walker], you know, 55 year old angry, bitter, guy. I’m like ‘thanks guys. Thank you so much.’ But what I loved about it was that the entire film, he’s  just a grump, you know. He’s just a grump through the whole thing. So I loved like when Britt first comes to the house. It’s really fun where it’s like shut up! You know, and like who are you? And so we really had fun shooting all that stuff in the farm house. That was fun ’cause all the robot guys were really sweet and nice, and not really robots, you know. I think that might have been the most fun scene to shoot, all the farm house stuff.

In your words, what would be the message of this movie to inspire teenagers.

Well, here’s the funniest thing about this. It’s a summer movie, right, and what you don’t want it to be is, you know, eat your spinach kind of, kind of thing. Or eat your broccoli. I mean, I’ve been in those kind of movies before and you don’t, you know, you sort of don’t want that, because it is a summer movie. But the truth of the matter is, the idea is that, the future is yours and the future is yours to decide what it will be. You know, as you look at the world, and you see how sort of, tragic it can feel, and you know, it always has been that way. It wasn’t particularly great in 1968 either. There were assassinations and there was wars and there was civil unrest and riots, but we weren’t as inundated with it, and so there was always still a hopefulness that the future was still gonna be alright. And I feel as if we have to get to that point where, we all understand that, you know, the individual is not helpless. And I think that’s a really important part of this, you know. An advantage since I’ve become successful, I understand that I have a voice that I can amplify things, so I can be louder or we can, there’s things that you can do that you can try to affect change with. But I was like that when I was 10, because I was told, that your voice has to matter and has to participate, even if two people hear you, because those two people may change, you know. I would say my parents taught me that and their parents taught them that, and I feel as if there’s a world where we have to constantly remind not just young people, ourselves that we’re not just stuck here, you know. I also think we have to find a way to put news back in perspective. I think part of the responsibility of news in general is not just to report on it, but put it in perspective.

 Photo Credit: Louise Bishop / Momstart.com

Now, this next question is fun…… stay tuned on the blog for a review and feature of the Tomorrowland attraction at Disneyland.

Did you keep any props or any memorabilia from the movie?

Now here’s the thing, Disney is very, ah, they’ve got like, you know, armed guards around all that stuff. And Brad is very, possessive of all those things as well, ah, and so I will not answer what I stole because they will come take it away from me, but it shoots rays and it’s a gun.

Overall, we had a complete blast with the George Clooney interview. As I said above, he was VERY funny with just about all of his responses and you know he loves what he does. In the script above, there are a few things or phrases that stand about to be as being great reminders and encouragement for not only us but for the generations after us:

“We’re not just necessarily doomed”

“Your voice has to matter and has to participate, even if two people hear you, because those two people may change, you know.”

 

Photo Credit: Louise Bishop / Momstart.com

Stay tuned on the blog for more interviews from our time at the Tomorrowland Event as well as our experiences.

After hearing George’s Interview, are you excited to see Tomorrowland?? Who will go see this family friendly movie with you?

TOMORROWLAND 
DISNEY
Website and Mobile site: www.Disney.com/Tomorrowland
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Genre: Mystery Adventure
Rating: PG
U.S. Release date: May 22, 2015
Running time: 130 min. 

Cast: George Clooney, Hugh Laurie, Britt Robertson, Raffey Cassidy, Tim McGraw, Kathryn Hahn, Keegan-Michael Key, Thomas Robinson
Director: Brad Bird
Producers: Damon Lindelof, Brad Bird, Jeffrey Chernov
Executive Producers: John Walker, Bernard Bellew, Jeff Jensen, Brigham Taylor
Story by: Damon Lindelof & Brad Bird & Jeff Jensen
Screenplay by: Damon Lindelof and Brad Bird 

STORY SYNOPSIS: From Disney comes two-time Oscar® winner Brad Bird’s riveting, mystery adventure “Tomorrowland,” starring Academy Award® winner George Clooney. Bound by a shared destiny, former boy-genius Frank (Clooney), jaded by disillusionment, and Casey (Britt Robertson), a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity, embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space known only as “Tomorrowland.” What they must do there changes the world—and them—forever. 

Featuring a screenplay by “Lost” writer and co-creator Damon Lindelof and Brad Bird, from a story by Lindelof & Bird & Jeff Jensen, “Tomorrowland” promises to take audiences on a thrill ride of nonstop adventures through new dimensions that have only been dreamed of. 

ONE-LINER: In Disney’s riveting mystery adventure “Tomorrowland,” a jaded scientist and an optimistic teen embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space. 

OFFICIAL BOILERPLATE: From Disney comes two-time Oscar® winner Brad Bird’s “Tomorrowland,” a riveting mystery adventure starring Academy Award® winner George Clooney. Bound by a shared destiny, former boy-genius Frank (Clooney), jaded by disillusionment, and Casey (Britt Robertson), a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity, embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space known only as “Tomorrowland.” What they must do there changes the world—and them—forever. 

Featuring a screenplay by “Lost” writer and co-creator Damon Lindelof and Brad Bird, from a story by Lindelof & Bird & Jeff Jensen, “Tomorrowland” promises to take audiences on a thrill ride of nonstop adventures through new dimensions that have only been dreamed of.

The film also stars Hugh Laurie as brilliant scientist David Nix, Raffey Cassidy, Tim McGraw, Kathryn Hahn, Keegan-Michael Key and Thomas Robinson. 

“Tomorrowland” is produced by Damon Lindelof, Brad Bird and Jeffrey Chernov and directed by Brad Bird, with John Walker, Bernard Bellew, Jeff Jensen and Brigham Taylor serving as executive producers. “Tomorrowland” opens in U.S. theaters on May 22, 2015. 

 

 

 

 

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