Inside celebrity homes: How A-listers protect their mansions

Hollywood stars Brad Pitt and George Clooney take their home security seriously.

High-profile celebrities who have been targets of intense stalking and targeted burglaries have turned to extreme lengths to make their properties extra secure.

These stars have gone above and beyond a door camera or alarm and employ a hi-tech, multi-layered security model to secure their million-dollar residences.

From countless CCTV cameras to 24/7 security guards, most celebrity homes employ a layered security model, according to security experts at Vic Locks Security.

This includes a combination of visible deterrents, such as CCTV cameras, and physical protections like deadbolts, high-security locks, and reinforced doors.

Here’s a look into what some of A-listers have done to garner the highest security for their homes.

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George and Amal Clooney

When it comes to home security and protecting their family, George and Amal Clooney have taken no shortcuts, with some comparing their Berkshire home in England to a “bunker”.

The Ocean’s 11 actor and his high-profile international lawyer wife Amal Clooney have had to take extreme precautions due to not only his actor celebrity status, but her business as a human rights lawyer.

Amal was a key adviser behind the courts request for the indictment of Hamas leaders and Benjamin Netanyahu and she has even reportedly received death threats.

Grazia reported their home “resembles a hi-tech fortress, complete with a bunker,” and they are under 24-hour surveillance.

Previously, the couple found themselves in the middle of a neighbour dispute over claims they planned to put in an 18-camera CCTV system at their $20 million (£10 million) Berkshire home as well as upgrading their homes in Italy and LA.

This came after Clooney claimed photographers “scaled our fence, climbed our tree and illegally took pictures of our infants inside our home”.

George and Amal Clooney have been steadfast about their home security to keep their family safe.

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Amal also explained in an interview to Glamour that her desire to safeguard her home and her private life was made all the more fervent by the arrival of her children, twins Ella and Alexander, who were born in 2017.

“I would say becoming a parent means you’re more troubled by some of the intrusions. So we do the best we can to minimise any impact on our children. We don’t put our children out there, we’ve never put their photo out there or anything like that,” she told Glamour.

The family also recently received French citizenship and have a farm property in the southern region in Provence.

“Here they don’t take photos of kids,” Clooney, 64, told the French broadcaster RTL.

“There aren’t any paparazzi hidden at the school gates. That’s number one for us.

“We also have a house in the United States, but our happiest place is on this farm where the kids can have fun.”

Brad Pitt

Brad Pitt is no stranger to the need for extreme home security. Picture: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

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In 2025, actor Brad Pitt beefed up his personal security at his $8.4 million ($US5.5 million) Los Angeles home after the Oscar-winner’s mansion was burglarised while he was away promoting his latest movie.

The suspects accessed the property through the front windows after scaling the fence, according to reports.

While Pitt usually has security personnel while he is home, his property was left unattended at the time. Just three months after the robbery, Pitt sold his property to actor Austin Butler, who purchased the property at a discounted price.

The Kardashians and Jenners

The Kardashian/Jenner family are also no stranger to the need for extra security.

Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner have talked about the security enhancements that were made to protect themselves and other high-profile residents from stalkers and burglars at their Hidden Hills, California gated complex.

In 2023, it was reported the Kardashians upgraded the community’s security cameras as well as security personnel on ground at the complex.

Kim Kardashian and her family made their gated community more secure. Picture: Supplied

This was after a series of burglaries and stalking incidents, including a man that was arrested after gaining access to the private community.

When Kim was living with her then husband Kanye West, she also reportedly had a manned security pod in the garage of their home 24/7.

The Beckhams

David and Victoria Beckham also made headlines with their plans to intensify security on their (£12m) Cotswolds country retreat. The couple have four children, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper, although they are currently estranged from their eldest son Brooklyn.

To up the security on the home, the couple planned to add a gatehouse, with two manned security huts for 24-hour surveillance. But that wasn’t the end of it – they also wanted an underground getaway tunnel.

Victoria and David Beckham pose with their four children at their West London home before Victoria’s 50th birthday bash. Picture: Instagram

Reports show the planning application stated: “The proposed use of the outbuilding is solely in association with the main dwelling house. It will serve as a gatehouse to improve security for the occupants of the property,” according to Hello Magazine.

The Beckhams also have a property in Miami estimated to cost about $24 million and their London townhouse worth about $60 million.

Britney Spears

The iconic pop star has had a controversial history with home security, particularly during her 13-year conservatorship controlled by her father James P. Spears.

The security at Britney’s Thousand Oaks Californian mansion during this time went above the normal security most celebrities enforced, including around-the-clock security at her property.

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The New York Times reported Britney Spears’ father and the security firm he hired ran an intense surveillance that monitored her communications, including placing a listening device in her bedroom, that recorded interactions and conversations with her partner and children, according to a former employee of the security firm.

The security company, Black Box Security’s founder has a background in the Israeli Special Forces, according to the New York Times, and counts the Kardashians, Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey among its clients.

The conservatorship officially ended in November 2021.

The property is also set behind two private gates within the prestigious White Stallion Estates community, and is surrounded by land to help protect the privacy of the residence.

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi

Before the chat show host and her actor wife Portia fled the US to live it up in the UK after Trump was re-elected, the couple had amassed a large portfolio of properties and were forced to ramp up the security on their multimillion dollar mansions after multiple security issues were breached due to their celebrity status.

The first reported incident was in 2011 when a stalker trespassed onto their property, and was later sentenced to three years probation. The 49-year-old stalker was discovered by security at Ellen and Portia’s mansion before she made it into the house itself. She did not make contact with either star before security got a hold of her.

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi in Paris. Picture: Instagram

A representative said at the time: “The property is protected by a 24-hour security team that detected and detained the intruder until she has turned over to the custody of Beverly Hills Police officers.”

In 2020, the couple made a security improvements on their Montecito mansion which TMZ reporting it resembled that of top government buildings, as laser sensors and cameras surrounded the entire property.

They also hired a new security team along with armed guards to patrol the grounds.

Now, the couple live in the English countryside which Ellen has reported on social media that Portia is “living her dream”.

After only one year of living in the English countryside, the pair have purchased a new Montecito estate worth $41 million. This has prompted renewed rumours about whether the couple’s future is anchored in Southern California rather than the English countryside.

Beyonce and Jay Z

The super star billion dollar couple were inspired to beef-up the security at their $131 million (US$88m) LA mansion after a slew of celebrity burglary victims including Nicki Minaj and Kendall Jenner.

In 2018, the couple submitted building permits to add new living quarters to the Bel Air gated community home for live-in security guards that would help them have 24/7 monitoring of the property, according to reports by TMZ.

The security quarters are to be attached to a new two-storey, two-car garage facing the front of the property and a new 10-vehicle carport facing the back road onto the property. This is to ensure that all entrances and exits to the gated, 2-acre compound are secure.

Just last year, the couple purchased the property next door for (US$17m) to expand their Bel Air mansion.

The couple however upgraded their property portfolio by purchasing a $300m (US$200m) Malibu residence, made of concrete by architect Tadao Ando in 2023.

The estate spans 30,000 sqm and has its own beach, ideal for privacy.