“I told you, mother*ker, if you’re going to pick on somebody pick on me”: George Clooney Put His Hands on Director David O. Russell For Humiliating Crew Members

"I told you, mother*ker, if you're going to pick on somebody pick on me": George Clooney Put His Hands on Director David O. Rusell For Humiliating Crew Members
Featured Video

George Clooney, the veteran actor known for movies like Ocean’s Eleven, Gravity, and, Ticket to Paradise once had a fight with director David O. Russell on set. Talking about the unnerving incident that took place on the set of Three Kings, Clooney had a strained relationship with the veteran director.

Advertisement

The Three Kings actor stated that David O. Russell was indeed a great director but was sometimes rude to the cast and crew of his team.

George Clooney.
George Clooney.

When George Clooney Got His Hands On David O. Russell

During the shooting of a 1990s classic movie titled Three Kings, director David O. Russell wasn’t exactly on good terms with actor George Clooney. It wasn’t long before the actor and director had a feud that left them finishing the movie under awkward talks.

Advertisement
David O. Russell is the director of Amsterdam
David O. Russell is the director of Amsterdam.

Also read: “I started to panic because I couldn’t get out”: Sandra Bullock Reveals She Nearly Died While Filming Gravity, Felt Rescue Divers Won’t Reach Her in Time in Crucial Underwater Scene

In an interview with Far Out Magazine, the actor regaled his tale of his fight with the acclaimed director while on the set of Three Kings. The fight ensued when O. Russell was being rude to an extra while on the set and George Clooney was not able to hold his anger anymore.

“We were trying to get a shot, and then he went berserk. He went nuts on an extra. I would not stand for him humiliating and yelling and screaming at crew members, who weren’t allowed to defend themselves. I don’t believe in it, and it makes me crazy. So my job was then to humiliate the people who were doing the humiliating”.

This wasn’t the end of the tale however, as George Clooney literally got into a fistfight with the director on the sets of the movie. Following the years that passed, the tale became a laughing point for the people but George Clooney and David O. Russell could not forget what happened.

Advertisement

Suggested: “I was playing Batman and I wasn’t good”: After Box Office Failure of ‘Batman and Robin’, George Clooney Had to Take Drastic Steps to Save His Hollywood Career

George Clooney Had A Fistfight With David O. Russell

A still from George Clooney starrer Three Kings (1999).
A still from George Clooney starrer Three Kings (1999).

Related: “Oh god, we got to take it out”: Christian Bale Nearly Lost His Eye Due to Method Acting, Forced Himself to Wear Lens That Looked Like a Glass Eye Which Almost Left Him Partially Blind

In an interview, the Three Kings producer Charles Roven detailed the insane behavior of the director and the actor on set. Things eventually got so bad that the actor and director found themselves in a boxing match.

Advertisement

“George sees David talking to the extras’ [assistant director], and it looks like he’s yelling at him. But he’s yelling to be heard. And George comes running over and goes, ‘I told you, mother——, if you’re going to pick on somebody, pick on me. And David goes, ‘Why don’t you just fucking remember your lines for once?’ And boom! They grab each other, and they’re tussling. And so I pulled George away. That was it.”

As nightmarish as the production of the movie sounds, the David O. Russell directed Three Kings found worldwide fame as the movie got a whopping 94% on Rotten Tomatoes while earning a pretty massive profit. Three Kings is available to rent on Apple TV+.

Source: The Things

Avatar

Written by Visarg Acharya

Articles Published: 2026

Visarg Acharya, Associate Content Writer, has been heavily involved in movies, series, and history. Having an experience of 2 years in the field of content writing, Visarg is a seasoned writer. Having a degree in Physics, Visarg Acharya has published a dissertation alongside a plethora of poems and short stories along the way.