Even though George Clooney’s acting career has slowed down over the years, there is no doubt that he was one of the biggest movie stars in the world throughout the 2000s and early to mid-2010s. Since that is a feat that the vast majority of actors can only dream of achieving one day, it makes sense that Clooney is mainly remembered for his film career. Still, longtime Clooney fans are bound to know that before Clooney became a staple of the big screen, many people became big fans as a result of George’s starring role in one of the ‘90s most popular shows.
Over the years, there have been many actors who got their first break on television only to become movie stars including George Clooney. After all, Clooney first rose to true fame as a result of starring in the first five seasons of the extremely popular and critically acclaimed show ER. Even though a lot of people remember his television star tenure fondly, they may not know a lot of facts about that time in George’s career including how much Clooney was paid to star in ER. On top of that, most Clooney fans have no idea that George once was asked to make a notable ER return but he refused to appear for a fantastic reason.
The Original Plans For George Clooney To Return To ER
From 1994 until 2009, ER was one of the most successful shows on television because the medical drama had millions of avid fans. As most people who once were among ER’s most passionate fans are bound to remember, George Clooney starred in the show’s first five seasons before his character was written out. Then, after Clooney was gone from the show for almost a decade, he surprisingly appeared during an ER episode that memorably aired during the show’s final season. If that wasn’t cool enough, Clooney appeared alongside his former ER co-stars Julianna Margulies and Eriq La Salle, both of whom had been gone from the show for years as well. With that in mind, some ER fans may be baffled by the idea that Clooney refused the opportunity to return to ER.
When George Clooney decided that it was time for him to move on from his starring ER role, several of his co-stars and real-life friends continued to headline the show. For example, Anthony Edwards continued to star in another three seasons of ER after Clooney left the series. When Edwards decided that it was time for him to leave ER behind as well, his character was written out of the show via a heartbreaking brain cancer storyline. Given the fact that Edwards and Clooney’s ER characters were close friends, the people behind the show asked Clooney if he would return for the episode where Antony’s character passed away. Ultimately, Clooney refused to return at that time.
The Selfless Reason Why George Clooney Refused To Return To ER Once
By the time it was time to film the episode where Anthony Edwards’ ER character passed away, George Clooney had already become a major movie star. While many major movie stars are happy to take television roles these days, that wasn’t the case when that episode was filmed. In fact, at that time, a lot of people believed that movie stars would do serious damage to their careers if they took a television role. For that reason, some people may assume that Clooney refused to appear during the episode where Edwards’ character died to protect his career.
According to Screen Rant, George Clooney didn’t refuse to return to ER for Anthony Edwards’ character’s funeral for selfish reasons like protecting his career or wanting a big payday. Instead, Clooney refused the request to appear in the episode because he wanted everyone to focus on Edwards’ departure. Since Clooney was a huge star by then, he believed that everyone would focus on his ER return if he was a part of the funeral scene.
While some people may think that George Clooney’s concern that his proposed ER return would have stolen the spotlight from Edward’s departure sounds egotistical, he clearly was right. After all, Clooney’s ER character was extremely popular so even if George’s career floundered after he left the show, fans would be overjoyed by his return. With that in mind, it seems very clear that Clooney refusing to appear during the funeral for Edwards’ ER character was the right choice if he didn’t want to take away from Anthony’s moment. It also proves that George Clooney is a very thoughtful guy.
