HOT on the heels of George Clooney’s surprise engagement, The ENQUIRER has learned that the silver-haired fox is already caught up in a cheating scandal!
The Oscar-winning stud’s mother let the two-timing cat out of the bag when she gushed over his fiancee, Beirut-born, British-raised lawyer, Amal Alamuddin.
While Clooney split from former live-in love, Stacy Keibler, in July 2013, his mom Nina Clooney told a reporter in April that the “Gravity” hunk first introduced Amal to his family “about a year ago.”
“George met Amal when he and Stacy were still very much together, and he broke Stacy’s heart,” said an insider.
“He says his romance with Amal didn’t begin until after he and Stacy split up, but Stacy still considers it a terrible betrayal.
“Although he wasn’t looking for love, George started having feelings for Amal immediately. He fell for her fast and hard.”
Former pro wrestling star Stacy, 34, started dating Clooney in August 2011, and she was still living in the 53-year-old actor’s house when his feelings were stirred by Amal, the source said.
“Even back then, George realized that Amal was the woman he’d spend the rest of his life with, and he introduced her to his mother and dad, Nick,” said the source.
“Stacy now realizes that George was laying the groundwork for dumping her months before they actually split.”
“Supermarket Superstar” host Stacy knew Clooney was meeting with Amal, 36, to discuss Syria’s political situation, as well as issues involved with the prosecution of her client, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, according to the source.
“Stacy thought their meetings were platonic, but George grew more distant,” the source noted.
“Then he told Stacy that he needed space and wanted to break up. She was blindsided and crushed.”
Clooney reportedly blamed the split over Stacy’s desire to start a family and his frustration with her fitness obsession.
And Stacy wasn’t the only collateral damage created by Clooney’s headline-making engagement.
As The ENQUIRER reported, the actor’s close pal Sandra Bullock was upset because she hoped their longtime friendship would blossom into a romance.
All the while, Clooney has often vowed that he’d never wed again. Just last December, he said in a magazine interview: “I haven’t had any aspirations in that way, ever. I was married in 1989. I wasn’t very good at it.”
But now he’s changing his tune!
Clooney and Amal – who specializes in international and human rights law – were first photographed together in London in October 2013. At the time, his publicist vehemently denied they were anything more than friends.
He reportedly first courted her through a series of flirty emails that began after she refused to take his telephone number. One of his emails was said to suggest that the “reported hottest man in the world should meet with the hottest human rights lawyer in the world.”
Apparently, Amal still made him wait a few days before finally succumbing to his charms.
The under-the-radar lovebirds traveled to Tanzania and the Seychelles in March 2014 and were spotted together soon after in New York City.
Clooney, who was married to actress Talia Balsam from 1989 to 1993, also took Amal to a February screening of his film, “Monuments Men,” at the White House. And he reportedly asked for her hand after cooking up a romantic dinner for her at his California mansion – then got down on one knee to present her with a 7-carat diamond and platinum ring.
Amal made the engagement public when she flashed the $750,000 sparkler while dining at Malibu hotspot Nobu with Clooney and his close friends, model Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber, on April 24.
Clooney’s fiancee comes from a prominent family that fled their native, war-torn country of Lebanon when she was young, and they resettled in England. Her mom, Baria, was a beauty once considered by some as the “Liz Taylor” of Lebanon, and her father, Ramzi, is a retired university business professor.
As The ENQUIRER reported, heartbroken Stacy didn’t waste much time reaping revenge on former “ER” star Clooney – she married tech entrepreneur Jared Pobre on March 8. A few weeks later, the newlyweds announced they’re expecting a baby.
Meanwhile, Clooney’s mom further raved about her son’s impending nuptials, saying: “I’m extremely happy. Amal’s a lovely girl…On an intellectual level, they are equals.”
Asked if Amal resembles her son’s previous sweeties, Nina responded: “Heavens, no! She’s a lawyer. She is brilliant…and at the very top of her career.”
The source added: “It drives the knife in deeper for Stacy to know George’s parents never thought much of her. She figures they were probably thrilled that George ditched her, even if he did so in a most ungentlemanly manner.”
A rep for Clooney denied that George had fallen for Amal while he was still with Stacy, insisting: “They did not start dating until last October.”
But another insider said: “George tried to give Stacy a graceful exit strategy by leaking the news that she’d broken up with him. Now, his worst fear is that Stacy will go public with the truth about him and Amal.”
