George Clooney Recalls Filming The Midnight Sky In Iceland & It Wasn’t Easy ( Photo Credit – still )
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Actor-Director George Clooney is all set to impress us with his latest offering – The Midnight Sky. The film that releases today on Netflix is infused with themes of isolation, loneliness, human connection and a natural disaster.
While we are excited to watch the flick, the director-actor revealed that the team faced some major hurdles while shooting outdoors in Iceland. Clooney even admitted that his eyelids used to freeze if he didn’t wear goggles while filming. Read all about it below.
During a recent video conference with journalists in Malaysian and Indonesian, George Clooney revealed that playing The Midnight Sky character wasn’t all that hard. However, he confesses there was a tiny hitch – and it will make you laugh. George Clooney said, “The trickiest part of this was, I had to do it (lose the weight) when we were in Italy over the summer. And that’s just cruel, you know.”
He continued, “The whole family is pounding pasta, and I’m eating like a bowl of lentil soup. Yeah, it’s awful.”
While this confession is a fun one, The Midnight Sky can be labelled as one of the most challenging things George Clooney has to do behind the camera. For those who do not know, except a couple of shoots (the ones involving water and a snowmobile), all other outdoor scenes set in the Arctic were filmed in the open. This shoot took place in Iceland in October where the temperature dropped as low as -4°C, and the wind speed was 110km/hr at times.
Recalling filming in such condition, George Clooney revealed that his eyelids would freeze shut in 45 seconds if he’s not wearing goggles for a scene. He said, “They’d have to take me by my hand into a SUV and with a blow dryer melt my eyelashes so I could open my eyes and go back out and shoot.” He added that the icicles seen on his beard and eyebrows in The Midnight Sky are real as no special effects were required.
That’s pure dedication to your craft, sir!
In an earlier interview with StarLifestyle, George Clooney revealed shooting in Iceland was challenging. While he admitted that the harsh climate helped to get a sincere performance as an actor, it was the exact opposite when it came to direction. George recalled that the shoot took place in some little mini-tornadoes and all members were tired to each other. He had said, “I have to say, as an actor, it was fantastic. (But) As a director, it was a pain.”
The Midnight Sky is directed by George Clooney and stars him, Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo, Tiffany Boone, Demian Bichir and Kyle Chandler. It is based on Lily Brooks-Dalton’s novel, Good Morning, Midnight. The film released on Netflix today, December 23.
