Venice locals protest Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' wedding in Italy
What was expected to be a lavish and extravagant wedding between Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancée, Lauren Sánchez, later this month in Italy, is being met with protests from Venice locals.
On Thursday, demonstrators in the historic city -- known for its gondolas, floating architecture, and rich artistic heritage -- hung a banner on St. Mark's bell tower with Bezos' name crossed out.
Posters and stickers have also appeared throughout the city, including one showing Bezos's face with the phrase "No space for Bezos."
Bezos and Sánchez have invited celebrity friends including Oprah Winfrey, Mick Jagger, Katy Perry, and Ivanka Trump to their three-day wedding celebration in Venice, according to the Associated Press.
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Sources close to the couple told the outlet that they are sourcing about 80% of their wedding provisions from local Venetian vendors as a gesture of appreciation for the romantic lagoon city. All events for the approximately 200 guests are expected to remain private.
The protest reflects growing frustration among some residents who believe Venice is increasingly becoming a playground for billionaires. Many fear the high-profile event will attract an influx of celebrities and disrupt daily life for both locals and tourists.
However, in a statement addressing public concerns, Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro dismissed the speculation and "fake news" surrounding the wedding, assuring that the small guest count and careful planning will prevent any disruption to the city.
"The many speculations and fake news circulating about Jeff Bezos' wedding are completely unfounded," the statement read. "Only two hundred guests will have been invited and therefore it will be easy for Venice to accommodate such an event, without any disruption whatsoever to the city, its residents and visitors."
Brugnaro stressed in the statement that Venice is well-equipped to handle major international events, noting its experience with the G20 Economy, G7 Justice summits, state bilateral meetings and cultural showcases like the Art, Architecture, and Cinema Biennales, along with large private gatherings such as conferences, fashion shows, parties, and VIP weddings.
"The organisation have categorically not booked large amounts of gondolas or excessive numbers of water taxis and it is their utmost priority to make sure the city functions as normal, for all, with no abnormal disruption to anyone," the statement continued. "As Municipality of Venice, from the beginning, we are mutually working and supporting the organizers, to ensure that the event will be absolutely respectful of the fragility and uniqueness of the city. For this reason, we will work together for best result. Whoever loves Venice will always be welcome."
Venice is no stranger to high-profile weddings. Past celebrity nuptials held in the city include George and Amal Clooney, as well as Salma Hayek and billionaire businessman François-Henri Pinault.
In contrast to the concerns raised by some residents, Brugnaro told the Associated Press, "We are very proud," adding that he hoped to personally meet Bezos.
"I don't know if I will have time, or if he will, to meet and shake hands, but it's an honor that they chose Venice," he said. "Venice once again reveals itself to be a global stage."
ABC News has reached out to the city of Venice for comment, but did not hear back immediately.
Bezos and Sánchez got engaged in 2023. Prior to their relationship, Bezos was married to MacKenzie Scott for 25 years, and the former couple has four children together.
Meanwhile, Sánchez was previously married to talent agent Patrick Whitesell, with whom she has two children. She also has a son from an earlier relationship with retired NFL star Tony Gonzalez.
Venice locals protest Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' wedding in Italy originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com
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Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez get steamy at foam party aboard $500M superyacht
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez are living it up ahead of their big day. The couple were photographed packing on the PDA during a foam party aboard the Amazon founder's super yacht, Koru, off the island of Cres in Croatia, over the weekend. Sanchez, 55, could be seen wearing a red and black string bikini, which she paired with a large sunhat and a pair of sunglasses. Bezos wore a pair of black swim shorts with blue designs on them, also accessorizing with sunglasses and a white bucket hat. In the photos obtained by Fox News Digital, the couple could be seen enjoying the party with their arms around each other in an intimate embrace while covered in foam, as they celebrated with friends. A happy birthday banner could be seen hanging elsewhere on the yacht, and it is believed the foam party was in celebration of Sanchez's son Evan's 19th birthday. Other photos showed the couple lounging together on a daybed on a smaller boat. The two are expected to tie the knot on June 27 as part of a three-day extravaganza in Venice, Italy. Due to protests from locals, the couple were reportedly forced to change one of their venues. This latest celebration rounds out a series of pre-wedding events the couple have enjoyed over the past two months leading up to their big day. They were previously photographed on Bezos' $500 million yacht, as he got handsy with the 55-year-old former entertainment journalist while docked off the coast of Cannes, France. While in Cannes, Sánchez hosted a star-studded bachelorette party on Thursday, May 15, at the restaurant Lafayette's. The 13 women in attendance included Kim Kardashian, Eva Longoria, Kris Jenner and Katy Perry. Sanchez shared photos of the evening on her Instagram, expressing how thankful she was for everyone who came together to celebrate with her before she married Bezos. "Forever starts with friendship, surrounded by the women who've lifted me up, illuminated my path in dark times, and shaped my heart along the way," she wrote in the caption. She also posed with Longoria on the red carpet at the Global Gift Gala while at the Cannes Film Festival. Longoria presented Sanchez with the Global Gift Women Empowerment Award at the ceremony, which she received for her philanthropy work, most notably with the Bezos Earth Fund and the organization, This Is About Humanity. Later that week, she attended the amfAR Gala at the Cannes Film Festival with Bezos. While she walked the carpet on her own, the two posed for photos inside the event. PHOTOS: LAUREN SÁNCHEZ AND JEFF BEZOS SHARE PDA AT FOAM PARTY ON YACHT IN CROATIA Sanchez stunned in a figure-hugging gown covered in blue and silver sequins that made her look like a mermaid, while Bezos looked dapper in a black tuxedo and bowtie.
Los Angeles Times
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The Bezos-Sánchez wedding woes are in a class of their own: Human blockades, yacht parking
Be glad you're not Jeff Bezos or Lauren Sánchez. Sure, being that rich would be awesome, but being rich comes with rich-people problems. With their Italian wedding imminent, they have a host of things to worry about that would never cross the imaginations of other, more average couples who don't have 12 digits representing their net worth. Most details of the Venice fête are being kept close to the vest. A couple of local companies have confirmed they are contributing handcrafted glassware and local pastries to the wedding-favor goodie bags. Some guests' names leaked when the invites went out in March (we name-drop below, never fear). But a few details that might be quite vexing to the bride and groom are playing out in public. Let's take a look. All of Venice may not truly be ticked off, but photos, activists and media coverage make it seem that way. Venice teacher and activist Marta Sottoriva called the wedding 'the symbol of all that is wrong with Venice.' 'There's a lot of anger in the air because once again the council has enslaved itself to the logic of profit — our city has been sold to the highest bidder,' she told the Guardian. 'Every time an event of this kind happens, the city comes to a standstill, certain areas become inaccessible and even more tourists arrive.' (Venice has been really annoyed lately by its number of tourists, kind of like the Louvre is really annoyed.) But tourism councilor Simone Venturini was shocked that anyone might be upset that such a high-profile event was happening in the city. 'We should all be proud that the Bezos wedding, an event of international importance, is being held in the waters of our lagoon,' he told the Guardian. 'Instead, the usual protest professionals have wasted no time. We want to reiterate that Venice is open to everyone.' Venturini was more colorful in speaking to the Wall Street Journal, saying, 'If Bezos' wedding goes ahead as planned, without these pain-in-the-ass protests, Venetian citizens won't even notice.' The couple's London-based wedding planners, Lanza & Baucina, told CNN in a statement, 'Rumors of 'taking over' the city are entirely false and diametrically opposed to our goals and to reality.' They and the client, the planners said, wanted to minimize any disruption to the city. That said, it's impossible to get a reservation this week at the Aman Venice, the nearly 500-year-old hotel on the Grand Canal where the happy couple are rumored to be staying, at least for part of their wedding week, along with a host of wedding guests. The place is fully booked through Sunday, per TMZ, at a reported $2,000 to $10,000 a night per room. Forget throwing soup on the 'Mona Lisa' — the Bezos wedding protesters might do something truly offensive: They are threatening to screw up traffic on the big day. 'Bezos will never get to the Misericordia [event space],' activist Federica Toninello told an appreciative crowd last week, according to CNN. 'We will block the canals, line the streets with our bodies, block the canals with inflatables, dinghies, boats.' Having just learned what the Misericordia is, we have no idea what role the location might play in the nuptials, but it looks like a nice enough spot for a reception. Fondazione Giorgio Cini, a cultural center built in 1951, has also been floated as a wedding venue. But let's get back to the blockades and such. Another speaker at that same rally said she didn't want Venice remembered as a beautiful wedding venue but 'as the city that did not bend to oligarchs.' 'We can't miss a chance to disrupt a $10-million wedding,' Na Haby Stella Faye said — because, really, how often does that chance come around? Although her goal stated at the rally was 'to stop this wedding,' in her Instagram stories Monday, she was promoting a planned Saturday protest of Bezos, President Trump and, well, war. Less aggressive protests include a host of banners and 'No Space for Bezos' posters that have been hung around the city. A colossal message from Greenpeace to Bezos was laid out Monday in the Piazza San Marco. The square banner, which read 'IF YOU CAN RENT VENICE FOR YOUR WEDDING YOU CAN PAY MORE TAX,' was quickly folded up and carried away by local cops, the Associated Press reported. 'It's absurd to treat this city like it's Disneyland,' said Grazia Satta, a retired teacher and social worker, per the Wall Street Journal. 'The message this wedding sends is that rich people can do whatever they want. We shouldn't kneel before wealth like this.' By Monday, Bezos' security team was making last-minute changes to try to outsmart the activists, according to TMZ. Even the water-taxi companies are being 'kept in the dark,' the site said, and if the water taxis don't know what's going on, who really does? Perhaps Bezos could tap that $212-billion bank account and enlist a Prime Delivery person to drop off himself and his bride discreetly at their reception? Though the human-size Amazon box could be a dead giveaway. Yes, we know yachts don't 'park,' they drop anchor. But no matter what you call it, the biggest yachts can't drop anchor in all parts of Venice. One wedding theory has held that Bezos and Sánchez will exchange their vows on his 417-foot yacht, the Koru, where he proposed to her two years ago after five years of dating. But reported plans to dock the yacht in a lagoon might have changed. Apparently the close-to-shore concept is starting to look like a safety hazard due to those threatened protests of the second-richest man in the world. The Koru is far from the only big boat floating around town, mind you. Venice has nine 'yacht ports,' all of which have been booked for the wedding week. Apparently, TMZ reported, noncelebrity billionaire yacht owners are altering their Venice vacation plans to avoid the crush. That has to sting. Fortunately, although the yacht situation is fluid and the airspace over Venice is closed, CNN reported that private helicopters are being given a pass, in case a head of state decides to chopper in. As one does. One type of watercraft not involved in the festivities? Gondolas, or at least those piloted by people the WSJ talked to. 'We are too slow,' one gondolier lamented. President Trump reportedly scored an invitation to the wedding. Unclear if a plus-one for Melania was included. However, the commander in chief is a wee bit busy handling world events these days — hard to tell if he will be able to get away, even for a gala event like this one. Aren't destination weddings the worst? So inconvenient. That said, Ivanka Trump and hubby Jared Kushner reportedly got invited too, along with Jared's brother Joshua Kushner and model wife Karlie Kloss. So the first family might be represented after all. And who knows, POTUS could swing by. Does Marine One count as a 'private' helicopter? Others on the guest list, per TMZ, include Leonardo DiCaprio, Oprah Winfrey, Gayle King, Bill Gates, singer Jewel, Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Corey Gamble, Barbra Streisand, Eva Longoria, Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom, Brian Grazer, Barry Diller, Diane von Furstenberg, models Brooks Nader and Camila Morrone, and Queen Rania of Jordan. Perry won't attend, though, because she's on tour.
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Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos is expected to tie the knot this week with Lauren Sanchez, a journalist, author and helicopter pilot. The celebrity couple, who reportedly dated for about five years before they got engaged in 2023, will marry in Venice, Italy, and will be joined by family and friends for the multi-day affair. Here's what to know about the upcoming high-profile nuptials. When will Bezos and Sanchez tie the knot? The exact dates of Bezos and Sanchez's wedding have not been made public. Media reports vary between June 24-26 or June 26-28, according to The Associated Press and The New York Times. Where will Bezos and Sanchez wed? The couple will say "I do" in the capital of the Veneto region, although specific venues are not public knowledge. Sanchez and Bezos, one of the richest men in the world, are reportedly relying on about 80% of local Venetian vendors and organizations for their big day, according to the AP, including pastry maker Rosa Salva, which has been in business for over 140 years, and glassware firm Laguna B, known for its Murano glasswork. Why are people protesting the Bezos-Sanchez wedding? The wedding has drawn protests, dubbed "No Space for Bezos," among some local residents and organizations like Greenpeace, who are speaking out against over-tourism, disruption to everyday life and more. Who will attend the Bezos-Sanchez wedding? Among the big names on the approximately 200-person guest list for the Bezos-Sanchez wedding are celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Mick Jagger, as well as Katy Perry, who traveled to space alongside Sanchez on a Blue Origin flight in April, the AP notes. Other attendees from the entertainment and business industries may include members of the Kardashian family, like Kris Jenner and Kim Kardashian, and actress Eva Longoria -- all of whom helped celebrate Sanchez ahead of her wedding during a bachelorette party in Paris back in May. Have Bezos and Sanchez been married before? Both Bezos and Sanchez have been in past relationships and were married to other people previously. Bezos made headlines in January 2019 after revealing that he and his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott were divorcing after 25 years of marriage. The former couple share four children. Sanchez was previously married to talent agent and businessman Patrick Whitesell for 14 years. Both Sanchez and Whitesell filed for divorce in April 2019, as reported by the AP. They share two children.
