“You know, Ben’s been through the ringer,” Clooney said to Deadline. “He’s been as high as you could get. He stood on the stage and won a couple of Oscars. He knows what it’s like to be at the top of the game, and he also has had some rough patches.” Clooney continued, “Some of them, as he has said many times, self-inflicted, but he’s a fighter, and he’s been out there, and he showed up on this one in such a big way and in such a gracious way, and he’s been doing it for a bit, and it’s fun to see the reactions towards him, and it’d be lovely if the same sort of attention was carried on [to the Oscars]. I think he would deserve it.”

Affleck recently has been reflecting on his past film experiences, calling “Armageddon” an “absurd” movie and admitting that box office bomb “Gigli” led him to “really question things” about his career. Related 2023 Brings a Diverse Set of Oscar Contenders. Will the Final Nominees Reflect that? ‘Living’: The Prime of Mr. Bill Nighy Related Oscars 2023: Best Original Score Predictions Nightmare Film Shoots: The Most Grueling Films Ever Made, from ‘Deliverance’ to ‘Mad Max’ to ‘Avatar 2’
“The Tender Bar” is based on Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist J.R. Moehringer’s memoir. IndieWire’s review described the film as a “pleasantly anecdotal amble down memory lane” with a “mellow mood.” Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.