George Clooney’s Memorable Moments at the Venice Film Festival
No Hollywood star seems as intrinsically tied to Venice as George Clooney.
Twenty-six years ago he attended his first Venice Film Festival with the instant classic “Out of Sight”; 19 years ago, it’s where he debuted his sophomore film, “Good Night, and Good Luck,” which earned him his first best director nomination; and 10 years ago, it’s where he exchanged vows with then Amal Alamuddin, at the Aman Venice, a five-star hotel perched alongside the Grand Canal.
Venice is a city that he, like many, thinks is one of the most beautiful in the world. Unlike most people, he also owns a 15-bedroom villa a few hours away on Lake Como that famously co-starred in “Ocean’s Twelve.”
Though he’s never all that far away from Venice, or the city’s namesake film festival, it might come as a surprise that Clooney hasn’t had a film debut there in seven years. But that clock resets next week as he returns with “Wolfs,” the Jon Watts-directed heist thriller that reunites him with Brad Pitt.
It won’t be the first time Clooney and Pitt have graced the festival’s red carpet together, either. In anticipation of his big return, here are some of Clooney’s most memorable Venice moments.
- 1998: “Out of Sight”
- 2003: “Intolerable Cruelty”
- 2005: “Good Night and Good Luck”
- 2007: “Michael Clayton”
- 2008: “Burn After Reading”
- 2011: “The Ides of March”
- 2013: “Gravity”
- 2014: George and Amal get married
- 2017: “Suburbicon”
- 2023: Spotlight on Amal
Clooney’s longterm love affair with Venice may have begun with the festival’s premiere of Steven Soderbergh’s Elmore Leonard adaptation “Out of Sight.”
This Coen brothers joint, co-starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, premiered out of competition at the 60th Venice Film Festival.
Clooney’s acclaimed black-and-white dramatization of journalist Edward R. Murrow’s clash with Joseph McCarthy began its successful run in competition at the 62nd Venice Film Festival.
Tony Gilroy’s “Michael Clayton,” which nabbed Clooney an Oscar nomination for his turn as the titular law firm fixer, played in competition at Venice.
This Coen brothers comedy featuring Clooney and Pitt opted to debut out of competition in the opening night slot.
Another opening night, out of competition slot debut for this Clooney-directed campaign thriller starring Ryan Gosling and Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Alfonso Cuarón’s “Gravity” opened the 70th edition of the Venice Film Festival before going on to win seven Oscars.
The canals were packed with paparazzi for the nuptials of one of Hollywood’s favorite bachelors.
Clooney returned to the festival with another of his directing projects, “Suburbicon,” a dark comedic satire about a seemingly idyllic 1950s community with Damon and Julianne Moore.
George was the plus one to Amal, who was receiving an award from the Diane von Furstenberg and The Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation for her work as a human rights lawyer.
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