Venice Opened Its Red Carpet for George Clooney
Share
Tonight, the Venice Film Festival opened its 2026 edition the way it always does — with a red carpet, a lagoon full of water taxis, and this year, a Golden Lion placed in the hands of George Clooney.
The festival kicked off with the premiere of Danny Boyle's "Ink," starring Guy Pearce as media mogul Rupert Murdoch. But the night belonged to Clooney, honored with a lifetime achievement award after more than three decades on screen.
There's something fitting about handing a lifetime achievement award to someone who spent his acceptance moment talking about the world outside the theater instead of just the one on screen. Venice has always been equal parts glamour and geopolitics — this year, with drone incidents, trade deadlines, and Ukraine dominating headlines elsewhere in Europe, the festival's opening night carried a little more weight than the usual parade of gowns and flashbulbs.
September 2, 2026 — 19:00, the night Venice opened its festival, honored a career, and reminded everyone that cinema still likes to say something about the moment it's living in.