George Clooney is quite the film buff according to director Leslie Iwerks (Picture: Getty)
A new documentary marking the 100th anniversary of film studio Warner Bros has revealed Hollywood actor, producer and director George Clooney to be a big fan of international star in movies – and dog – Rin-Tin-Tin.
The German Shephard was rescued from a World War One battlefield by American soldier Lee Duncan, who trained him before putting the pooch in silent films, where he was a very good boy and an instant box office hit.
Rin-Tin-Tin, nicknamed ‘Rinty’, went on to appear in 27 films and gain worldwide fame before dying in 1932.
His success was a huge boon to Warner Bros at the time, earning him his rightful mention in the new four-part documentary – 100 Years of Warner Bros – where his praises are sung by none other than contributor George Clooney.
Now, documentary director Leslie Iwerks, who was also behind The Imagineering Story on Disney Plus, has confirmed that Ocean’s Eleven star Clooney was a fan of the celebrity dog.
100 Years of Warner Bros boasts a stunning list of talking heads, from filmmaker Tim Burton and Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood to Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot, everyone’s favourite Keanu Reeves and director Martin Scorsese.
The star contributes to a new documentary, where he shares his knowledge (and love) of Rin-Tin-Tin (Picture: Getty)
A German Shepherd rescued from a World War One battlefield, ‘Rinty’ went on to become an international success in films for Warner Bros (Picture: Keystone via Getty Images)
It is also narrated by Morgan Freeman.
Discussing how the contributors were chosen for the documentary, Iwerks told Metro.co.uk at the Cannes Film Festival: ‘It was based on what we were going to be putting in the [documentary], so the TV shows and the films, and then who is going to be best to speak to that, and who also had the relationships with Warner Bros that had a lot to say.
‘You always want the biggest actors and names that you can get who can speak passionately about the subject.’
Pressing her on if that meant Clooney was a fan of Rin-Tin-Tin, which marks his first appearance in the documentary, Iwerks responded: ‘Yes, apparently!’
The celebrity dog appeared in 27 films, including Where the North Begins in 1923 (Picture: LMPC via Getty Images)
Clooney played Dr Doug Ross on five seasons of smash-hit TV show ER, produced by Warner Bros (Picture: NBCUniversal via Getty)
The 53-year-old producer, director and writer – who is the granddaughter of animator Ub Iwerks, co-creator of both Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and one Mickey Mouse, alongside Walt Disney – also shared how she felt Clooney outdid her in terms of Warner Bros knowledge.
‘The fact that he knew so much history about Warner Bros was impressive to me. He knew in some ways more than I did! He’s a student of film history. And I think Warner Bros means a lot to him because it really launched his career,’ she added.
Clooney shot to fame in the Warner-produced medical drama ER in the 1990s, as well as appearing in the studio’s infamous Batman & Robin as the Caped Crusader.
Iwerks felt it was a natural fit for her to do a documentary on Warner Bros after tackling Disney’s Imagineers – the people responsible for creating, designing and constructing the company’s theme parks worldwide – given her childhood right at the heart of Hollywood.
Iwerks directed and produced the new documentary, 100 Years of Warner Bros (Picture: Getty)
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She shared: ‘I was honoured to be asked to tell the story of Warner Brothers. I grew up in Burbank, and we had a house up on the hill, and we could look out and see the Disney water tower, and then we could see Warner Bros’ water tower.’
‘To be able to tell the story of two studios, in the sense that I’ve told the story of Disney and its origins and Imagineering and then to now delve into Warner Bros, which I really didn’t know a lot about – not to the level that I do now,’ Iwerks continued.
‘You tend to not really think about a studio’s story. You think about the films themselves and the impact that certain films have had, but you never really think about what was the connective tissue that led to this entire studio lasting 100 years? How did they do that?
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‘That was what was interesting to me, really getting inside the business story of it, as well as the creative [side].’
Warner Bros was founded on April 4, 1923 by brothers Jack, Harry, Sam and Albert Warner.
Metro.co.uk contacted a rep for George Clooney for additional comment.
All four specials from the 100 Years of Warner Bros docuseries are available to stream on Max in the US from June 1.
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‘I think Warner Bros means a lot to him because it really launched his career,’ director Leslie Iwerks shared.
