George Clooney Vowed He'd 'Never Marry Again' until He Met Amal Alamuddin — He Won Her Heart with Letters

• George Clooney had been a confirmed bachelor for decades but got married later in life.

• He wrote letters to his future wife in the hopes that he would win her over.

• Nicole Kidman bet on George's paternity after he married his wife, Amal.

• George and Amal revealed their approach to raising twins as a family and their worries.

George and Amal Clooney are one of Hollywood's biggest "it couples" and have impressed many fans with their relationship and family, but George did not always have it easy in the romance department.

George married once when he was very young and got divorced shortly after that. However, he handled the divorce with dignity and was then a bachelor for much of his life until he met a woman that changed his mind.

George was married to Talia Balsam from December 15, 1989, to September 17, 1993. After the pair divorced, George confessed that he felt responsible for the failed relationship. He said that he was unwilling to fix things.

After George and Talia ended their marriage in 1995, the actor vowed that he would never marry again. He told Barbra Walters that his decision was based on the fact that he believed he wasn't "very good" at marriage.

However, by 2006, George had slightly changed his mind about never marrying again. Speaking to "People," Clooney said that he might marry again, but it was not something he was looking for, and he was genuinely happy living as a bachelor.

By the time George met Amal, he had been a bachelor for many years and had earned the title "confirmed bachelor" by fans. Yet, the minute she walked into the room, George

he was "taken" by her and knew that marriage was once again on the cards.

Although he was attracted to Amal and hoped to build a relationship with her, he was not yet sure whether or not she would like him, so he did something unusual to keep her attention; he wrote her letters from his dog.

George's Letters Won Amal's Heart

Although George was not sure whether or not Amal liked him, he pursued her anyway. He knew that he could not begin courting her in the normal way and had to do something out of the ordinary.

Talking to "CBS Mornings" about how he began his courtship of Amal, George

:

"She's this extraordinarily fun, smart, beautiful, great woman, and I was just very taken with her, and I started writing her letters."

When asked what the letters from George were about, Amal said that some of the letters came from George's dog. George quipped that he figured she couldn't get mad at a dog sending her letters.

RELATED: George Clooney Does Not Hide His Feelings about Turning 60

Amal shared that one of the letters from the dog was the dog asking for a human rights lawyer to help rescue him from the wine cellar. She then said she was definitely taken with George as much as he was with her.

The pair started dating in October 2013, and in what seemed like a whirlwind romance, they got engaged in April 2014. By September of the same year, the couple had tied the knot at Aman Canal Grande Hotel in Italy.

Clooney Had a Responsible Approach to Children

When asked whether or not he would consider becoming a father, George confirmed that it was not a decision he would take lightly, and it was not something that he wanted to do badly. He wanted to be as fully present as he could be if he had children.

He

that he thought the most responsible thing one could do was to have children, and he didn't think that he had that gene in him. However, he said that his mind might change over time because his life was changing all the time.

George said that many people believed that he did not have children because he hated them. However, he said that he actually adored kids, and it had nothing to do with him not liking children.

Michelle Pfeiffer and Nicole Kidman even bet the actor that he would have children by 40. They each bet him $10,000 that by his 40th birthday, he would be a father. When his 40th birthday came and went, and he still had no children, Kidman sent him a check.

While Kidman honored the bet they had made years before, George returned the check and told Kidman that they would make it double or nothing and that he had children by the time he turned 50. It turned out that George wouldn't welcome children until long after his 50th birthday.

Only when George was 56 did he and Amal welcome their twins, Ella and Alexander, into the family. The couple was elated at the birth of their twins and said that they were all healthy. Many fans and colleagues were also pleased with the news.

RELATED: Inside George Clooney's 'Low-Key' Home for Nearly 30 Years Where He Welcomed Twins with His Wife at 56

Talking about how it felt for him to be a dad to two children with the love of his life, George said:

"We've sort of embraced it all … with arms wide open."

George Wants to Give His Children the Best Upbringing

Although George and Amal were ecstatic about welcoming their children into the world, George said that he had concerns about raising well-rounded children. He shared all the things he wanted for his children.

He wanted them to be happy, have a sense of humor, and be interested in things, but he also knew there was something more important. He said:

"I want them to be compassionate about other people's plights. Because that's the thing, you know? You have to have some sort of empathy."

RELATED: Amal Clooney Reveals Husband George Clooney Is Teaching Twins How to Prank during Quarantine

Amal, on the other hand, believed that her family brought balance into her life and expressed how grateful she was to be a mother and to have found the love of her life who inspires and supports her.

In 2022, the couple said that in their almost 10-year relationship, they've never had an argument. They

their marriage as the "easiest thing in [their] lives so far" and said that they had each met the right person.