Clint Eastwood on gay marriage was one of the most interesting segments of the western star’s recently appearance on Ellen Degeneres daytime talk show. Despite aligning himself with Mitt Romney’s Presidential campaign – a man known for his staunch anti-gay marriage views – Eastwood surprised come commentators with his own opinion.

The actor-director essentially told Ellen that whoever you choose to marry should be none of the government’s business, asserting, “It’s a part of the libertarian idea: Leave everybody alone!” Eastwood went on to suggest that the United States were facing serious problems – most notably the economic situation – and that politicians were wasting much too time discussing gay marriage, saying, “The condition of society right now with the high unemployment rates, and the tremendous debt increasing, and the government spending, you’d think there’d be a lot to think about, except worrying about what gay marriage is about.” The actor has always been known as a libertarian, rather than a Republican, and his comments reiterate his belief about gay marriage which he first made public during an interview with GQ in 2011. On that occasion he said he didn’t “give a f*ck” if a gay couple wanted to marry. So that’s that, then.

The actor – who most recently helmed the big-screen biopic ‘J Edgar’ – was the subject of internet mocking last week after his infamous speech at the Republican convention. During an interview with Extra TV, Eastwood had little sympathy for Mitt Romney – whose campaign he is said to have harmed with his skit – saying, “If somebody’s dumb enough to ask me to go to a political convention and say something, they’re gonna have to take what they get.”