George Clooney will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival, recognizing a career that has spanned acting, directing and producing across film and television.
“I’ve had so many extraordinary moments in Venice,” Clooney said in a statement. “This festival is without question my favorite and to be given the Golden Lion is a tremendous honor. It also probably means I’m old, but I’ll take it.”
In announcing the honor, Venice Artistic director Alberto Barbera described Clooney as “a complete and charismatic artist” whose career has combined mainstream success with an ongoing commitment to ambitious filmmaking and humanitarian causes.
Clooney is a Venice regular, having premiered such features as Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), Gravity (2013), The Ides of March (2011), and most recently, Jay Kelly (2025) on the Lido.
Barbera said Clooney’s career, in front of and behind the camera, demonstrated “a demanding and generous concept of cinema” while reflecting Clooney’s longstanding engagement with political and social issues.
