Though George Clooney turns 60 on May 6, the actor-director-producer-writer-all-around-beloved-King-of-Hollywood, as we’ve pointed out before, is timeless. Throughout his career, there have been notable highs (he won Oscars for supporting actor in “Syriana” and for producing best picture winner “Argo”) and legendary lows (he’s more apt than anyone to take shots at “Batman & Robin.”)
But for as big a star as he is, Clooney has never shied away from taking risks — one can’t accuse him of playing it safe. Which makes narrowing down his 10 greatest performances a challenge as the actor is always completely committed no matter the genre, plot or team he’s working with. To clarify, this is not a list of his best films — that would look entirely different. Rather, it’s an appreciation of his best performances — the ones that surprised us, impressed us and reaffirmed why he remains one of our best stars — and actors — working today.