A recent Clint Eastwood interview in which he seemingly teased his next directorial effort and dismissed Hollywood remakes has turned out to be an alleged fake.
Austrian outlet Kurier published the interview which was picked up by trades and other publications all over, including here.
Among the choice quotes in the interview were Eastwood saying: “My philosophy is: do something new or stay at home” along with indicating he was in pre-production on his next film.
Eastwood, however, spoke with Deadline and says the interview was fabricated:
“A couple of items about me have recently shown up in the news. I thought I would set the record straight. I can confirm I’ve turned 95. I can also confirm that I never gave an interview to an Austrian publication called Kurier, or any other writer in recent weeks, and that the interview is entirely phony.”
Kurier has since released a lengthy statement explaining what happened. The article’s author has reportedly spoken with Eastwood a total of 18 times at roundtables. The article was supposed to be a birthday portrait, which often use quotes from multiple interviews as a common practice. However, it was formatted in a way to “create the impression that it was a new interview”. They say:
“The fact that this wasn’t the case is not in keeping with the quality standards the Kurier maintains. Even though no quote is fabricated, the interviews are documented, and the allegation of falsification can be refuted, we will no longer work with the author in the future because transparency and our strict editorial standards are paramount to us.”
Eastwood most recently directed the film “Juror #2”.
