A junior member of President Emmanuel Macron's government on Wednesday criticised the French passports given to Hollywood superstar George Clooney despite him speaking poor French, saying the move suggested a "double standard".
The news of Clooney, his wife Amal Clooney and their two children becoming French comes ahead of language requirements for citizenship being toughened for everyone else under new immigration rules from January 1.
"Personally, I understand the feeling of some French people of a double standard," Marie-Pierre Vedrenne, a junior interior minister, told the France Info radio station.
"We need to be careful about the message we're sending."
Her boss, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez, and the foreign ministry, however, defended the decision.
The civil code states that "French nationality may be conferred by naturalisation, upon the proposal of the minister of foreign affairs, to any French-speaking foreigner who applies for it and who contributes through their distinguished service to France's influence and the prosperity of its international economic relations."
But the 64-year-old Oscar winner has admitted that his French remains poor despite hundreds of lessons.
Under the new immigration rules from Thursday, applicants will need a certificate showing they have a level of French that could get them into a French university. They will also have to pass a civic knowledge test.
Clooney has a property in southern France and said he has hailed French privacy laws that keep his family largely protected from international media intrusion.
"I love the French culture, your language, even if I'm still bad at it after 400 days of courses," the actor told RTL radio - in English - in December.
His wife, an international human rights lawyer and dual UK-Lebanese national, speaks fluent French.
'Meets the conditions'
Clooney bought the Domaine du Canadel, a former wine estate, near the Provence town of Brignoles, in 2021. He said it is where his family is "happiest".
Nunez, the interior minister, said he was "very happy" with the actor and his family becoming French, saying the country was lucky to have them.
The French foreign ministry said the passport allocation for the Clooneys "meets the conditions set by law" for naturalisation.
The family "followed a rigorous procedure including security investigations, regulatory naturalisation interviews at the prefecture, and the payment of tax stamps," the ministry added.
It highlighted that the Clooneys had a French home and they "contribute through their distinguished service to France's international influence and cultural prestige" through the actor's role in the film industry.
This "can only contribute to maintaining and promoting France's position in this essential economic sector", it said.
Amal Clooney is "a renowned lawyer" who "regularly collaborates with academic institutions and international organisations based in France," the ministry added.
Some 48,800 people acquired French nationality by decree in 2024, according to interior ministry figures.
Clooney is not alone in wanting a French passport.
Hollywood director Jim Jarmusch announced on Friday that he was also applying, telling French radio that he wanted "a place to where I can escape the United States".
