George Clooney evacuates French estate as wildfire burns 130 hectares near Brignoles; pledges to help rebuild

Evacuation from the Domaine du Canadel

George Clooney, his wife Amal and their nine-year-old twins Alexander and Ella left their estate in Brignoles, in the Var department of southeastern France, after a wildfire broke out on Wednesday afternoon. The family's property, the Domaine du Canadel, a former wine estate on a hilltop across the valley from the town, was not included in the official evacuation order that covered about 650 people on the southern outskirts. The Clooneys nevertheless decided to leave as flames approached.

At this point we have no idea whether our beautiful home makes it through this terrible moment and as we evacuate Brignoles we want to emphasise two things.

The fire burned roughly 130 hectares of vegetation and prompted the temporary evacuation of around 700 residents, according to local authorities; earlier reports on Thursday morning put the burned area at about 100 hectares and the evacuation order at 650 people. Three Canadair water-bombers, two other firefighting aircraft and seven helicopters were deployed. Crews halted the spread around midnight and brought the fire under control at about 3 a.m., and four firefighters were injured and taken to hospital in Toulon and Brignoles. Those evacuated were allowed to return home on Thursday. The Brignoles fire was one of four burning in the Var department; the most serious, at Ponteves, had already consumed 4,500 hectares.

A letter to the mayor

Clooney's publicist shared with Reuters a letter the actor sent to Brignoles mayor Didier Brémond. Brémond told BFM TV he believed the fire had been started deliberately: "People lose their homes, lose lives. You don't play with that." In it, Clooney expressed uncertainty about the fate of the house and stressed the family's commitment to the community.

First, we hope you and the people of our city are safe and second that Amal and I are committed to making sure that whatever happens to our village, we are part of this community and we'll be part of making it whole. We love Brignoles and our friends who live there.

The letter was addressed to "Dear Didier" and was made public on Thursday. French media reported that the Clooneys spend part of the year in an 18th-century villa outside Brignoles, about 90 kilometres east of Marseille.

The estate and the family's ties to France

The couple bought the property in 2021, when Reuters reports it carried an estimated value of around €9 million ($10.3 million); other outlets put the figure lower, at about €8 million in Sud Ouest and El Mundo and at $7.7 million, some €6.7 million, in El País. The grounds run to roughly 172 hectares and take in woodland, a vineyard, an olive grove, a lake and a lavender field, with an 18th-century bastide, a swimming pool and a tennis court. It became the family's main residence. In a 2025 interview with Esquire, Clooney described it as their "farm in France". The entire family (George, Amal and the twins, who were born in the United Kingdom) obtained French citizenship in 2025. The French foreign ministry justified the decision by citing the actor's contribution to the country's international image.

A wider fire emergency

The Brignoles evacuation unfolded against the backdrop of one of France's most severe wildfire seasons. Nationwide, at least 220,000 residents and holidaymakers have been forced to flee, with mass evacuations concentrated in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and in the Gironde department. The Gironde blaze, the largest in France since 1949, has destroyed 42,000 hectares of pine forest.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez described the crisis as one of the gravest the country has faced in peacetime. Across the Mediterranean, Greece and Spain were also battling outbreaks. On Wednesday two firefighters died on Crete after becoming trapped near Krya Vrysi, and a third was killed near the Peloponnese port town of Gytheio.

Despite the scale of the emergency, the Clooneys' immediate focus remained on Brignoles. The actor's letter closed with a promise to stand by the town regardless of the damage to his own property.