Anna Kendrick Reveals Wise Pep Talk George Clooney Gave When She Felt 'Insecure' onUp in the AirSet

Mar. 15, 2025

Anna Kendrick and George Clooney at the after party of ‘Up in the Air’ in Los Angeles on Nov. 30, 2009.Photo:Alex Berliner/BEI/Shutterstock

Alex Berliner/BEI/Shutterstock

Anna Kendrick spoke about costar George Clooney’s encouragement during their 2009 movieUp in the AirThe actress appeared on an episode ofWho’s Talking to Chris Wallace?released Friday, Nov. 8Kendrick earned an Oscar nomination for her performance as Natalie Keener inUp in the AirAnna Kendrickwill never forget this pep talk from costarGeorge Clooney.During a new episode ofWho’s Talking to Chris Wallace?released Friday, Nov. 8, the actress, 39, recalled Clooney’s encouragement when they worked together on the 2009 filmUp in the Air.Speaking about working with Clooney, 63, early in her career, Kendrick said it was “absolutely terrifying — I mean, completely terrifying.”“To other people he is kind of capital-G George, you know? And he works really hard to make you forget that and feel comfortable,” she continued. “The very, very first shot that he and I did together was my first shot in the movie.”She added, “We were standing on this people-mover, and we’re kind of waiting, cameras pretty far away, and he said, ‘God, do you get nervous on the first day? I get so nervous. Do you get insecure? I get really insecure.’ ”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Anna Kendrick as Natalie Keener and George Clooney as Ryan Bingham in ‘Up in the Air’.Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock“And I was like, ‘Yes, I do, George. I do. I totally get nervous. I totally get insecure,’ ” Kendrick recalled.She added, “And he was doing this whole thing about, like, ‘I worry. Like, did they even hire the right guy?’“ThePitch Perfectstar said it wasn’t until years later that she came to a revelation that Clooney was trying to help calm her nerves.“It wasn’t for years that suddenly that memory popped into my brain, and I thought, ‘No, he does not! No, he does not get nervous, and he does not get insecure or worry that they’ve hired the wrong guy,’ " she said.“Maybe that’s something he dealt with earlier in his career, but it was such a gift for him to say that, because it felt like, ‘Oh, okay, I can bring my anxiety into the moment, and someone is going to hold space for that and be cool with that,' " she said.“It really, really set me at ease. And was a complete fiction!” she added.Up in the Airearned six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, plus nods for Kendrick and Vera Farmiga in Best Supporting Actress, Clooney in Best Actor, and Jason Reitman in Best Director.Anna Kendrick on Oct. 22, 2024.Jason Mendez/GettyThe PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!Kendrick previously spoke toBusiness Insiderlast monthabout working with Clooney in the movie.“He was really the first person that I worked with where I would see him listening to the notes that other actors would get and he would adjust his off-camera performance to help elicit whatever adjustment was called for,” she said.Kendrick makes her directorial debut in the new true-crime thrillerWoman of the Hour, in which she also stars. In October, Kendrick told PEOPLE that directing and starring in the film “was a little bit like directingwith a blindfold on.”“I could basically run to the monitor, ask to see 30 seconds from the middle of that take and be like, ‘Okay, fingers crossed that there’s no surprises when I get into the edit,' " she said of when she’d finish performing in a scene.New episodes ofWho’s Talking to Chris Wallace? areavailableevery Friday morning on Max.

Anna Kendrickwill never forget this pep talk from costarGeorge Clooney.

During a new episode ofWho’s Talking to Chris Wallace?released Friday, Nov. 8, the actress, 39, recalled Clooney’s encouragement when they worked together on the 2009 filmUp in the Air.

Speaking about working with Clooney, 63, early in her career, Kendrick said it was “absolutely terrifying — I mean, completely terrifying.”

“To other people he is kind of capital-G George, you know? And he works really hard to make you forget that and feel comfortable,” she continued. “The very, very first shot that he and I did together was my first shot in the movie.”

She added, “We were standing on this people-mover, and we’re kind of waiting, cameras pretty far away, and he said, ‘God, do you get nervous on the first day? I get so nervous. Do you get insecure? I get really insecure.’ ”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Anna Kendrick as Natalie Keener and George Clooney as Ryan Bingham in ‘Up in the Air’.Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock

Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock

“And I was like, ‘Yes, I do, George. I do. I totally get nervous. I totally get insecure,’ ” Kendrick recalled.

She added, “And he was doing this whole thing about, like, ‘I worry. Like, did they even hire the right guy?’”

ThePitch Perfectstar said it wasn’t until years later that she came to a revelation that Clooney was trying to help calm her nerves.

“It wasn’t for years that suddenly that memory popped into my brain, and I thought, ‘No, he does not! No, he does not get nervous, and he does not get insecure or worry that they’ve hired the wrong guy,’ " she said.

“Maybe that’s something he dealt with earlier in his career, but it was such a gift for him to say that, because it felt like, ‘Oh, okay, I can bring my anxiety into the moment, and someone is going to hold space for that and be cool with that,' " she said.

“It really, really set me at ease. And was a complete fiction!” she added.

Up in the Airearned six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, plus nods for Kendrick and Vera Farmiga in Best Supporting Actress, Clooney in Best Actor, and Jason Reitman in Best Director.

Anna Kendrick on Oct. 22, 2024.Jason Mendez/Getty

Jason Mendez/Getty

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

Kendrick previously spoke toBusiness Insiderlast monthabout working with Clooney in the movie.

“He was really the first person that I worked with where I would see him listening to the notes that other actors would get and he would adjust his off-camera performance to help elicit whatever adjustment was called for,” she said.

Kendrick makes her directorial debut in the new true-crime thrillerWoman of the Hour, in which she also stars. In October, Kendrick told PEOPLE that directing and starring in the film “was a little bit like directingwith a blindfold on.”

“I could basically run to the monitor, ask to see 30 seconds from the middle of that take and be like, ‘Okay, fingers crossed that there’s no surprises when I get into the edit,' " she said of when she’d finish performing in a scene.

New episodes ofWho’s Talking to Chris Wallace? areavailableevery Friday morning on Max.

source: people.com