By all accounts, George Clooney should be preparing an acceptance speech for this Sunday's Academy Awards. He's the favorite for Best Actor, following a tremendous performance in The Descendants.

But the actor - who only made $300,000 for that film - took time to chat with the latest issue of The Hollywood Reporter this month, opening up about a number of topics, including his friendship with another Best Actor nominee. Excerpts from the interview are below...

On alcohol: "I do enjoy drinking, and there have been times in my life when it’s crossed the line from being fun to having to drink late at night for absolutely no reason. So what I do is, I stop. I haven’t had a drink since New Year’s Eve."

On Brad Pitt: “Brad is one of the great guys. We’re good friends, but it’s different from what people think, meaning we don’t spend a lot of time together. He has been to my home in Como; we motorcycle together. But until recently, I hadn’t seen Brad in a year.”

On loneliness: "Anyone would be lying if they said they didn’t get lonely at times. The loneliest you will get is in the most public of arenas: You will go to a place and end up in the smallest compartment possible, because it’s a distraction to everybody, and you end up not getting to enjoy it like everyone else.” He adds, “I have been infinitely more alone in a bad relationship; there’s nothing more isolating. I have been in places in my life where that has existed.”