Clooney has described the property as a farm and the main base for his family life, marking a significant shift away from Los Angeles, the traditional center of his industry and personal brand. For a two-time Oscar winner closely identified with Hollywood, turning a Provençal farm into “home” is itself a strong signal about where he believes his children’s future—and his own equilibrium—can best be protected. But it also amounts to a quiet referendum on the viability of the American Dream, even for the ultra-visible, ultra-wealthy class he represents. His move underscores how privacy, stability, and a less celebrity-obsessed culture have become premium “assets” that some high earners no longer see as reliably available in the United States.​

Clooney has been unusually explicit about why he no longer wants to raise his family in Los Angeles. “I was worried about raising our kids in L.A., in the culture of Hollywood,” he told Esquire recently, adding that he felt they were “never going to get a fair shake at life” there. He further explained that “France—they kind of don’t give a s— about fame,” and emphasized that he does not want his children “walking around worried about paparazzi” or “being compared to somebody else’s famous kids.”​

He has also argued that his twins “have a much better life” in France than they would have had in Los Angeles, describing their routine on the farm as screen-light, chore-heavy, and family-centered. In that framing, France is less a romantic escape than a structural solution to the distortions that come with U.S. celebrity culture—and, by extension, a critique of a system that often markets visibility as a reward but delivers surveillance as a cost.​

For much of the 20th century, the American Dream was sold as a package of meritocracy, upward mobility, and cultural centrality: make it in America, and you are at the center of the world. Clooney’s relocation suggests that for some of the people who “made it,” the dream now requires an offshore upgrade. The same U.S. system that enabled him to build wealth and status appears, in his telling, ill-suited to giving his children a “fair shake” or a normal childhood.​

​Anecdotal evidence supports the idea that the ultrawealthy from the U.S. are increasingly deciding that their American Dream lies overseas. Ellen Degeneres and Portia De Rossi famously moved to the UK shortly after President Donald Trump was reelected, while Rosie O’Donnell, often a target of pointed attacks from Trump, qualified for Irish citizenship and moved to Dublin. Richard Gere, like Clooney, seemed to move for love, relocating to Spain to be close to the family and culture of his wife, Alejandra Silva. Fashion designer Tom Ford splashed out on a large mansion in London and has begun calling the UK home, while former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has purchased a house in London as well.

The data shows a wider spike in expat movements. The IRS “Expatriation List” (which mainly captures wealthier individuals who meet certain asset or tax thresholds) recorded about 4,820 citizenship renunciations in 2024, up roughly 48% from 2023 and the third‑highest annual total on record. (The top two years on record were the epochal years of 2016, when Trump was elected, and 2020, when the pandemic hit and Trump lost reelection.)​ Between 2020 and 2024, about 21,000 high‑net‑worth individuals renounced U.S. citizenship, which is roughly 39% of all expatriations reported since this list began in 1996. These figures likely undercount the prominent departures ​because they only include so‑called “covered expatriates” (people above a net‑worth or tax‑liability threshold) and exclude less‑wealthy renouncers and many who move without giving up citizenship. The New Yorker even wrote an article recently, titled “How to leave the USA,” citing surges in citizenship applications to both Ireland and the UK in particular.

A case study in elite ‘life diversification’

Clooney’s family still maintains ties to the U.S. and the U.K., and the new French nationality comes on top of Clooney’s existing American citizenship, not in place of it. In portfolio terms, the family appears to be diversifying not just its investments and passports but also its exposure to cultural and media risk, shifting the center of gravity to a country where fame carries fewer day-to-day penalties.​​

In late 2025, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter joined Forbes‘ billionaire ranks, becoming one of only a handful of musicians—alongside Jay-Z, Rihanna, Bruce Springsteen, and Taylor Swift—to cross the 10-figure threshold. Her wealth is built on stacked revenue streams: blockbuster tours like Renaissance and Cowboy Carter, high-margin merchandise, an owned catalog valued in the hundreds of millions, and Parkwood Entertainment, which lets her keep control of the products she creates.​

That portfolio is the compound interest on two decades of disciplined reinvention—from Destiny’s Child to solo superstardom to entrepreneur—each chapter designed less around being everywhere and more around owning what matters most.​

Beyoncé has been candid that the early years of her career were defined by saying yes to almost everything: nonstop tours, red carpets, awards shows, and press that eventually led to insomnia, exhaustion, and deteriorating mental health. She has since told GQ in an interview that she draws a hard line: if a project doesn’t obsess her when she wakes up and follow her into her dreams at night, she passes—even if it is lucrative.​

That philosophy extends to her calendar. She structures touring around her children’s school breaks and disappears from public events between major projects so she can recover, create, and be present at home. The result is fewer appearances, but each is bigger, more meticulously produced, and more profitable—culminating in tours grossing hundreds of millions and films that extend the earning life of each era.​

Beyoncé’s shift mirrors a broader reckoning. In 2024, roughly 82% of knowledge workers surveyed across North America, Asia, and Europe reported at least some level of burnout, even as 88% also described themselves as highly engaged. That “burned out but locked in” paradox—employees simultaneously exhausted and deeply invested—creates a dangerous incentive to push hardest on the people already at their limit.​

For HR leaders, the warning is clear: relying on a small cadre of “work horses” risks a toxic cycle where top performers quietly hit a wall and leave as soon as the job market improves. Beyoncé’s own playbook offers a lesson for business leaders: define the culture you actually want, clarify strategy, and invest in what you’re already good at instead of layering on more work for the same people.​

If the early Beyoncé era was about never saying no, today’s workforce is moving the other way. Roughly 65% of employees now feel empowered to decline additional responsibilities, with workers 25 and under the most likely to say no to extra tasks. That resistance is not laziness; survey respondents describe it as a survival strategy against chronic burnout, even as many still feel guilt when they set boundaries.​

The most effective employers, research suggests, are those that normalize these boundaries by redesigning roles and workloads rather than glorifying the martyr who always says yes. Beyoncé’s refusal to trade her time for every opportunity—even when demand is virtually unlimited—is a high-profile version of the same move.​

• Own the leverage, not the hours. Beyoncé’s billionaire status flows from asset ownership—catalog, company, creative IP—rather than simply stacking more tour dates or endorsements. Workers and executives alike gain the most when they move away from performative busyness toward roles and projects where their unique skills compound over time.​
• Make boundaries a performance strategy. Her choice to tour around her family’s schedule and to vanish between eras is not a luxury; it is why each launch lands as an event, not just another release. Fortune’s reporting shows that companies that build similar space—by empowering employees to say no, rebalancing workloads, and focusing on results rather than constant availability—are better positioned to retain engaged, high-performing talent in a tight labor market.​
• Redefine what “hard work” looks like. Beyoncé has said she has already “worked harder than anyone” she knows—now the challenge is to work smarter. For ambitious professionals, that means trading the visible grind of late nights and endless emails for the less visible work of prioritization, creative focus, and long-term bets that, like hers, can eventually be measured not in hours logged, but in enduring value created.

Only two years ago, Gen Z had amassed $9 trillion in income, but by 2030 they’re expected to have $36 trillion. And by 2040, that number rises to $74 trillion. A 2025 Bank of America report showed this will place them as the richest—and largest—generation by 2035, as Gen Z is expected to grow to 30% of the global population in the next decade. 

Gen Z’s projected economic dominance can feel worlds away from their current economic situation. But there might be light at the end of the tunnel as they climb up the corporate ladder and take on their family’s inheritance.

Gen Z’s current economic woes: no houses and no kids 

Many young people are strapped for cash, stepping out of college and into an uncertain job market. Gen Zers are having to turn down job opportunities because they can’t afford commuting expenses. They’re spoiling their pets in lieu of having children, which have become too expensive to raise, and abandoning the pipe dream of purchasing a home—unless they receive an inheritance. 

Gen Z is also struggling with holding down a job. Young households receiving unemployment surged 32% year over year in February, according to the report. But it’s not for a lack of trying, despite the naysayers. The report said Gen Zers are “overeducated and underemployed,” and amid a tough white-collar labor market, unemployment for new entrants was up over 9% year over year in February. This results in Gen Z taking gigs that they may be overqualified or not the right fit for, which can have long-term career ramifications. 

Yet in just 10 years, this could all flip on its head. The Bank of America report noted that wage growth for Gen Z increased by 8% year over year in February. A part of this bump can be attributed to the generation finally entering the full-time job market, leading to higher wages. But the biggest contributing factor in their financial boost is the Great Wealth Transfer, expected to hit Gen Z bank accounts in the years to come.

The great wealth transfer into the pockets of Gen Z

With the odds stacked against them, Gen Z’s best bet on living comfortably is coming into wealth. 

About $84 trillion is anticipated to pass down from seniors and baby boomers to Gen X, millennials, and Gen Z by 2045, according to a 2021 report from Cerulli Associates. Most of the money will be handed over to Gen X and millennials—but 38% of Gen Z still anticipate they will receive an inheritance, according to a separate survey.

Gen Z’s share of the pie, alongside their stark wage increases, will lead to a ballooning of their economic power. Even in the current day, the young generation is a force to be reckoned with. They have higher discretionary spending habits compared to others, and their global spending is expected to reach $12.6 trillion by 2030, compared to $2.7 trillion in 2024. Their spending growth per household has also been stronger than the overall population, including both necessity and discretionary spending, according to the report. 

There’s a few reasons why Gen Z spends so much of their money: They’re pouring funds into their high rents and education costs; “doom spending” on essentials and small luxuries, instead of saving up for bigger investments that feel unattainable; and trying to escape their high credit card and student loan debt. 

But businesses should take note: Once Gen Zers have money to burn, they’ll be in the driver’s seat of the economy. Companies are already taking note of their preferences: luxury, e-commerce, wellness and beauty, and pets. Gen Z is also deeply invested in fintech, new media, gaming, and big tech, according to the Bank of America report. Their tastes will shape which business will thrive in 2035. 

“It’s likely they will be among the most disruptive generations to economies, markets, and social systems,” the Bank of America report says. “Whether it’s due to changing diets or reduced alcohol consumption or saving and housing, Gen Z will redefine what it means to be a U.S. consumer.”

A version of this story originally published on Fortune.com on March 17, 2025.