Ellen Burstyn to receive Venice Golden Lion for lifetime achievement
Ellen Burstyn will receive Venice's Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, the festival announced Tuesday. The Oscar-winning actress behind "The Exorcist" and "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" earns one of cinema's highest honors for decades of fearless, emotionally truthful screen work.
Key Takeaways
- Burstyn will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival.
- Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera praised her intensity and transformative portrayals of complex women.
- The award will be presented during a screening of Maggie Gyllenhaal's short film "Flesh Impact."
- Burstyn stars in the Marilyn Monroe tribute alongside Dakota Johnson, Peter Sarsgaard and Sepideh Moafi.
- The 83rd Venice Film Festival runs Sept. 2–12; Burstyn next appears in Kornél Mundruczó's "Place to Be" with Taika Waititi.
Why is Ellen Burstyn receiving Venice's Golden Lion?
Variety reports that Ellen Burstyn, whose credits include "The Last Picture Show," "The Exorcist" and "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore," will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 83rd Venice Intl. Film Festival. The festival confirmed the news on Tuesday.
Artistic director Alberto Barbera described Burstyn as "an actress of rare intensity and truth," adding that she brought "depth and complexity to unforgettable female characters embodying the contradictions and transformations in the contemporary woman."
Barbera pointed to her Oscar-winning turn in Martin Scorsese's "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore," calling it "the film manifesto about women reclaiming their identity and their freedom." He also cited her breakthrough in Peter Bogdanovich's "The Last Picture Show" and global stardom from William Friedkin's "The Exorcist."
Which directors has Burstyn worked with?
Barbera noted that Burstyn "worked with some of the most important film directors of the time," including Alain Resnais in "Providence," Paul Schrader in "Hardcore," Bob Rafelson in "The King of Marvin Gardens," Paul Mazursky in "Alex in Wonderland" and "Harry and Tonto," Darren Aronofsky in "Requiem for a Dream" and Christopher Nolan in "Interstellar."
He also praised her acting approach, saying Burstyn "made fragility and methodical discipline the tools of an approach to acting grounded in emotional truth, attentiveness and generosity toward one's characters." Her artistry, he added, "remains an absolute model of authenticity in performance and civic engagement within the craft of acting."
When will Burstyn accept the award at Venice?
The Golden Lion will be awarded to Burstyn on the occasion of the screening of Maggie Gyllenhaal's short film "Flesh Impact." Dedicated to Marilyn Monroe on the centenary of her birth, the film showcases Burstyn's "uncommon talent as a performer," the festival said.
The cast also includes Dakota Johnson, Peter Sarsgaard and Sepideh Moafi. Johnson portrays Monroe at the height of her fame, while Burstyn stars as a version of Monroe the world never got the chance to see. "Flesh Impact" takes its title from a phrase once used to describe Monroe's aura—that she looked so real and luminous on camera that viewers felt they could touch her through the screen.
The 83rd Venice Film Festival runs Sept. 2–12. For more festival and awards coverage, see our Streaming & TV Alerts hub.
What did Burstyn say about the honor?
In a statement quoted by Variety, Burstyn said: "Wow! I not only get to travel to one of my top most favorite cities in the whole world, I get to return home carrying a Golden Lion in my arms! The Lifetime Achievement Award from the Venice Film Festival! I feel so honored— so happy — so filled with gratitude! Wow indeed!"
Burstyn will next star alongside Taika Waititi in Kornél Mundruczó's "Place to Be." The Golden Lion caps a career defined by roles that blend vulnerability with resilience—a legacy Venice now formally recognizes on the Lido.