Billionaire Jeff Bezos is about to marry journalist Lauren Sánchez in Venice this weekend.
The couple has been collectively since 2019 after the Amazon founder’s divorce from Mackenzie Scott. Bezos and Sánchez turned engaged in 2023.
The extravagant affair, which kicked off Thursday and can proceed by Saturday, brings swaths of friends from Hollywood and Silicon Valley alike. However the nuptials have additionally been met with hostility as locals protest the occasion’s takeover of the Italian metropolis.
Right here’s what to know concerning the flashy wedding ceremony.
Bezos invitations Trump
Bezos prolonged a marriage invitation to President Trump, whom he has courted in latest months, The Wall Road Journal reported this week.
The billionaire, additionally the founding father of house firm Blue Origin and proprietor of The Washington Publish, has gotten nearer with the president over the past a number of months after he spiked the Publish’s endorsement of Trump’s 2024 rival and donated tens of millions to his inauguration festivities.
The alienation of former adviser Elon Musk, who owns SpaceX, from the White Home additionally created a gap for Bezos to additional strengthen his relationship with Trump.
Though the Journal reported Trump will not be attending the marriage, his daughter Ivanka Trump is together with her husband, Jared Kushner, and their kids.
Celebrities descend on Venice
The three-day bash additionally boasts a star-studded visitor listing, together with actors, moguls and athletes.
Ninety personal jets are anticipated to fly over Venice over the course of the weekend, based on The Related Press.
Of the anticipated 200 or so friends, confirmed attendees embody Queen Rania of Jordan, Tom Brady, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Oprah Winfrey, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom and Mick Jagger.
Fellow tech titan Invoice Gates in addition to trend icon Diane von Furstenberg and her husband, Barry Diller, will even attend.
Activists protest overtourism, immediate venue change
A number of native organizations have voiced their opposition to the marriage and inflow of high-profile figures within the metropolis.
Venice, a vacationer hotspot that not too long ago instituted a price for day-trippers, comes as locals warn of excessive housing costs and flooding attributable to local weather change, the AP reported.
A number of teams, together with Extinction Rise up and Greenpeace, have hosted “No Space for Bezos” protests at St. Mark’s Sq. and different well-liked spots all through the town towards the marriage. On Monday, protesters branded a big poster with a photograph of Bezos and the phrases, “If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax.”
There have been additionally demonstrations deliberate to disrupt friends as they arrived at venues all through the weekend. However on account of safety considerations, wedding ceremony organizers modified the preliminary wedding ceremony venue to a safer one in a much less busy space.
As a substitute, protesters will now collect on Saturday night at Piazzale della Stazione within the metropolis.
Venetian authorities have condemned the demonstrations. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro mentioned he’s joyful that Bezos is getting married in Venice because it promotes tourism, however he warned that protesters are hurting the town’s status.
“We will always respect the right to speak out, but we reject every form of intolerance and prejudice,” he mentioned in Thursday’s version of Italian newspaper Il Foglio Quotidiano. “No one in Venice can claim the right of deciding who can enter, who can love, who can celebrate.”
Nuptials prices tens of millions
The times-long celebration is estimated to value between $46 million and $56 million, per the AP.
Bezos, the world’s third richest individual, particularly requested no items from friends, however he mentioned donations will likely be despatched to native organizations supporting the preservation of Venice.
“Donations on your behalf are being made to UNESCO Venice Office to safeguard the city’s irreplaceable cultural heritage, to Corila to restore the vital lagoon habitats that protect Venice’s future, and to Venice International University to support research and education for sustainable solutions,” the invitation reads.
