Emily Mortimer and Noah Baumbach on Crafting the Life of ‘Jay Kelly’ [VIDEO INTERVIEW]
In Jay Kelly, the newest film from Academy Award nominee Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story), two-time Oscar winner George Clooney plays the titular role, an aging movie star at a turning point in his life, a life that has left many near him in the shadows while he spent decades in the limelight.
As Kelly is about to receive a lifetime achievement award at an Italian film festival, he embarks on a crisis of conscience, in desperate need to make up and make good with his daughters Jessica (Riley Keough) and Daisy (Grace Edwards) with his longtime manager Ron (Adam Sandler) and publicist Liz (Academy Award winner Laura Dern) in tow.
Baumbach, director and co-writer on the film, along with co-writer Mortimer discuss the creation of Jay Kelly the person and the film, the approach they took together as collaborators and how much of themselves and their own lives with in the industry made their way into the story.
Jay Kelly also stars Academy Award nominee Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup, Patrick Wilson, Academy Award winner Jim Broadbent and more. The film will be in select theaters on November 14 and on Netflix December 5.
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
- AwardsWatch Podcast Ep. 318 – The First Week of Awards Season with Critics Choice, Spirit Awards Nominations; NYFF, NBR, Gotham Winners - December 5, 2025
- Critics Choice Awards TV Nominations: ‘Adolescence’ Leads, Followed by ‘Nobody Wants This’ - December 5, 2025
- Michigan Movie Critics Guild Nominations: ‘One Battle After Another’ Leads with 12 - December 5, 2025
AwardsWatch Podcast Ep. 318 – The First Week of Awards Season with Critics Choice, Spirit Awards Nominations; NYFF, NBR, Gotham Winners 
Critics Choice Awards TV Nominations: ‘Adolescence’ Leads, Followed by ‘Nobody Wants This’ 
Michigan Movie Critics Guild Nominations: ‘One Battle After Another’ Leads with 12 
31st Critics Choice Awards Nominations: ‘Sinners’ Leads with 17, ‘One Battle After Another’ Earns 14