American actor and director Clint Eastwood, who recently turned 95, has found himself at the center of an international media scandal. The trigger was an interview published in the Austrian newspaper Kurier, in which the Hollywood legend allegedly talks about his life philosophy, his disdain for franchise films, and his preference for younger women. However, Eastwood himself vehemently denies ever giving such an interview. In his words, the entire piece is “completely fabricated.”
“There have been some articles about me in the news recently,” Eastwood told the American film industry outlet Deadline. “I’d like to set the record straight: yes, I did turn 95. But I can also confirm that I have not given an interview to the Austrian Kurier or to anyone else in recent weeks. The interview is entirely fake.”
Why Would a Newspaper Publish a Fake Interview?
The article was published last week to mark Eastwood’s 95th birthday. Quotes from it were quickly picked up by various media outlets. For example, Kurier attributed the following statements to Eastwood:
— “I always knew that a positive attitude gets you further than a negative one.”
— “I’m not interested in remakes and franchises.”
— “At a certain point, I was always older than my women.”
This might seem harmless — if not for one critical detail: Eastwood rarely gives interviews, especially to European media. For him to make an exception for an Austrian reporter seemed suspicious from the start.
As Der Spiegel notes, the interview reads as shallow and generic. Particularly odd is the opening question — “Where does your motivation come from?” — to which Eastwood allegedly gave a vague, philosophical answer without much substance.
Who Is Elisabeth Sereda?
The article’s author is Austrian journalist Elisabeth Sereda, who has long worked as a Hollywood correspondent for Kurier and other Austrian outlets like ORF. She is well-known in industry circles, holds voting rights for the Golden Globes, and has been nominated several times for the Publicists Guild’s International Media Award.
In recent months alone, Sereda has published interviews with Jude Law, Cate Blanchett, and Pamela Anderson — all global superstars who are not easy to reach for one-on-one interviews. In 2017, she published a book titled Hollywood Backstage, chronicling her life among the stars. Notably, George Clooney wrote what was described as a “very personal foreword” for it.
Sereda also recently posted a selfie with Clint Eastwood on her Instagram. However, it turns out the photo is from 2012 — casting further doubt on any recent interaction between them.
Who’s Telling the Truth?
Kurier’s editorial office told Der Spiegel that they only recently learned of Eastwood’s allegations and are now investigating the situation internally. Neither the author nor the paper has officially responded to the accusations so far.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first time Kurier has claimed to interview Eastwood: in 2020, the newspaper published another conversation with the Oscar winner, in which he spoke about his grandfather. That article, too, was authored by Sereda.
Additional doubts arise from a factual error in the latest piece: the Kurier article claims Eastwood’s latest film Juror #2 would be released “at the end of this year.” In reality, the film premiered in November 2024. This raises the possibility that the interview was either written a long time ago and sat unpublished, or that it was simply assembled from old quotes and speculation.
Falsification or Misunderstanding?
As of now, Sereda has not commented publicly. The question remains open: who is telling the truth — the world-famous actor or the acclaimed journalist?
If Clint Eastwood’s statement proves accurate, this could become one of the most high-profile cases of journalistic fabrication in recent years — and a serious blow to Kurier’s reputation and its standing in Hollywood.
According to Der Spiegel, the situation demands a transparent investigation. What’s at stake is not only the credibility of a newspaper but also the integrity of international journalism itself.
This article was prepared based on materials published by Der Spiegel. The author does not claim authorship of the original text but presents their interpretation of the content for informational purposes.
The original article can be found at the following link: Der Spiegel.
All rights to the original text belong to Der Spiegel.
