George Clooney Reveals How His Father Influenced 'Ides of March'

George Clooney says his Ohio-Kentucky roots and his father's failed bid for political office influenced his upcoming film The Ides of March.

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Clooney, whose father unsuccessfully ran for Kentucky's 4th Congressional District in 2004, told the Cincinnati Enquirer that the movie's cynical take on politics was inspired by his own upbringing. In addition, as well as some of the characters' comments were taken from columns his dad wrote when he worked for the now-defunct Cincinnati Post.

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"It's part of who I am," Clooney said of the movie he both stars in and directed.

He added that he decided to film the movie in Cincinnati because of his familiarity with the city.

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"Ohio has always been the key state," Clooney said. "I put it in Cincinnati because I know it really well, and I thought it would be fun to shoot in my hometown."

In Ides, which opens Friday, Clooney stars as fictional presidential candidate and Pennsylvania Gov. Mike Morris. Ryan Gosling plays the governor’s idealistic press secretary who learns quickly about dirty politics.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood and Marisa Tomei co-star in the movie.