George Clooney, who is rapidly becoming the silver lion of American Film (check out the poster for his film, he’ll be on a stamp soon), pulled up to the Lido in a shiny white boat last night (I predicted ‘stretch gondola’ but I was damn close!) and stepped out onto the red carpet for the world premiere of his latest directorial effort, The Ides of March. No, that’s not Elisabetta Canalis in the boat, it’s Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber.

Also in attendance were George’s costars Evan Rachel Wood, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Marisa Tomei and Paul Giamatti. Conspicuous by his absence was Ryan Gosling who denied the women of Italy his Baby Goose-iness because he’s still in upstate New York filming The Place Beyond the Pines.

After a stop in Toronto, The Ides of March opens in the US on October 7 and in the UK on 28 October. Watch this space…we’ll have more from Venice in the next few days!

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Photos: WENN