George Clooney: What's Coming Up Next for the 'Ides of March' Director-Actor

George Clooney's personal life has always been fodder for the tabloids, but the director-actor-producer has several projects post-The American coming down the pipeline. So what's next for the ER vet?

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First up is political feature The Ides of March, which was adapted from a play by Beau Willimon, starring Clooney (who also wrote and directed), Ryan Gosling, Evan Rachel Wood, Paul Giamatti, Jeffrey Wright and Philip Seymour Hoffman. In the film, Clooney plays Governor Mike Morris, a politician eyeing a presidential run and Gosling portrays an idealistic employee who sees firsthand dirty politics while on the campaign. Ides of March is set to be released Oct. 7.

Next up is The Descendants, the Alexander Payne-directed feature about a land baron who tries to reconnect with his two daughters after his wife suffers a traumatic boat accident, which will head to the Toronto Film Festival. Judy Greer, Matthew Lillard, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges and Robert Forster co-star in the drama.

In The Descendants, set for release Nov. 23, Clooney plays Matt King, a lawyer with ties to an aristocratic Hawaiian landowners. "It's difficult to give him a hard time. George is always in such good spirits," Payne said in an interview.

Clooney next stars in 2012's Gravity alongside Sandra Bullock, to be directed by Alfonso Cuaron. The sci-fi thriller centers on a sole survivor of a space mission sent to repair the Hubble telescope who desperately tries to return to Earth and reunite with her child. Clooney replaced Robert Downey Jr. in mid-December; Downey Jr. was with the project through various casting changes but in mid-November, left.

But that's not all, Clooney is attached to star in The Man From U.N.C.L.E., a feature to be directed by Ocean's helmer Steven Soderbergh. Late last year, Clooney met with Soderberg about playing the role of agent Napoleon Solo in the feature, which would be set in the 1960s -- like the original TV series.

On the producing side, Clooney is just as busy, serving as a producer on the upcoming Ides of March and Argo, which will star Ben Affleck. He also serves as an executive producer on TNT's Memphis Beat.