Clint Eastwood in the 2000s Oscar nominations, including Best Director and Best Picture for "Letters from Iwo Jima". In 2008, Eastwood directed "Changeling", based on a true story, starring Angelina Jolie. In 2009, Eastwood directed "Invictus", with Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as rugby team captain François Pienaar. John Carlin, author of the book on which the film is based, sold the film rights to Freeman. Then in 2011, Clint Eastwood collaborated with Brad Paisley to make the song "Eastwood". Clint Eastwood in the 2000s In 2000, Clint Eastwood directed and starred in "Space Cowboys" as Frank Corvin, a retired NASA engineer
Clint Eastwood of Spain by the then relatively unknown Sergio Leone. Richard Harrison suggested Eastwood to Leone because Harrison knew Eastwood could play a cowboy convincingly. Eastwood thought the film would be an opportunity to escape from his "Rawhide" image. Eastwood signed a contract for $15,000 in wages for eleven weeks' work, with a bonus of a Mercedes automobile upon completion. Eastwood later spoke of the transition from a television western to "A Fistful of Dollars": "In "Rawhide" I did get awfully tired of playing the conventional white hat. The hero who kisses old ladies and dogs and was kind to everybody.