George Clooney proved again that he’s Hollywood’s consummate professional by fighting back illness to make the red carpet for the world premiere of his new movie, Jay Kelly, at the Venice International Film Festival.
Until he strolled across the carpet, arm in arm with his wife, Amal Clooney, to enter Venice’s Sala Grande Thursday night, it was unclear whether Clooney would make it. He is in town to promote the Noah Baumbach-directed dramedy — in which he plays the titular character, a very George Clooney-esque movie star in the midst of a personal crisis — but pulled out of press and media commitments over the first two days of the festival due to a bad sinus infection.
Clooney missed the Jay Kelly press conference earlier today and cut short some media commitments on Wednesday. He also reportedly bailed on a swanky private dinner with Baumbach and fellow cast members.
“Even movie stars get sick,” Baumbach quipped, commenting on Clooney’s no-show at the press conference.
A close source to the film told The Hollywood Reporter that Clooney’s presence on the red carpet was touch-and-go and that Clooney is unlikely to sit through the film. He is also not expected to travel to the upcoming Telluride Film Festival to support its next screening of Jay Kelly.
Clooney stars in Jay Kelly in a role that seems tailor-made for him: A world-famous actor facing a late-career reckoning, who begins to question his life choices as he is crisscrossing Europe with his fiercely loyal manager, played by Adam Sandler. The film was co-written by Baumbach and Emily Mortimer, who has a small role as Jay Kelly’s stylist.
Jay Kelly is screening in competition in Venice, one of three competition titles from Netflix, and is being positioned by the streamer as a major awards play, with both Clooney and Sandler expected to get Oscar-season pushes for their performances.
Alongside Baumbach, Sandler and co-stars Laura Dern, Billy Crudup, and Emily Mortimer, Clooney was joined on the Venice carpet by his agent, CAA power rep Bryan Lourd.
More to come.
