George Clooney related to Abraham Lincoln

The surprising connection came up during a research by Ancestry.com. The website was tracing the family tree of the former president in celebration of Steven Spielberg's upcoming film 'Lincoln', which details Honest Abe's attempts to abolish slavery and steer the country through a civil war.

George Clooney. Pic/Santa Banta

Clooney and Lincoln are half-first cousins, five times removed, according the website. "We noticed there were similarities between the names and places of Abraham Lincoln's tree and George Clooney's tree.

They both have deep roots in Kentucky, so once we honed in on that we were able to find a connection between the two," Michelle Ercanbrack of Ancestry.com said. The men are connected through Lucy Hanks, who was Lincoln's maternal grandmother. "Maybe they're not two men you'd originally put together, but we've found some interesting similarities.

They're both human rights advocates... Both are excellent writers... And obviously both have the talent of being able to grow a really great beard," Ercanbrack said.

The actor-activist, whose aunt Rosemary Clooney was a singer, is a supporter of President Barack Obama. He is also actively involved in finding a resolution for the Darfur conflict. He even made a documentary 'Sand and Sorrow' to highlight the problem. Clooney has been part of political films like 'Syriana', 'The Men Who Stare at Goats', 'Good Night And Good Luck' and 'Ides of March'.u00a0