Legendary actress Kim Novak made a rare and heartwarming appearance at the Venice International Film Festival on August 28, returning to the spotlight. The “Vertigo” icon marked her first major public outing in a decade, and it definitely turned heads.
Iconic Actress Makes A Dazzling Red Carpet Return
(Photo by Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images)Dressed in sleek black, Kim Novak — who is portrayed by Sydney Sweeney in Colman Domingo’s new film “Scandalous”- waved to photographers as she arrived at the event.
(Photo by Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images)With oversized sunglasses and her signature blonde bob, the 92-year-old star looked radiant and ready to take the Venice Film Festival by storm.
When Did Novak Leave Hollywood?
(Photo by Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images)Novak, now 92, left Hollywood in 1966 to pursue a quieter life in Oregon, choosing art and animals over the glare of stardom.
(Photo by Aldara Zarraoa/Getty Images)Her graceful return comes just days before she will be honored with the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement on September 1, a tribute that celebrates not only her Hollywood legacy but also her journey of living life on her own terms.
(Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)In a recent interview with The New York Times, Novak reflected on leaving Hollywood nearly 60 years ago. “When I left Hollywood, it isn’t like I just wrapped up my life,” she explained.
(Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)“Suddenly I was free to express everything on canvas and not have to be the canvas.”
. (Photo by Earl Leaf/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)She previously told People magazine in 2021, “I had to leave to survive. I lost a sense of who I truly was and what I stood for. I fought all the time back in Hollywood to keep my identity.”
Celebrating Novak’s Story on Screen
(Photo by Baron/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)Alongside the honor, Venice will premiere “Kim Novak’s Vertigo,” a new documentary chronicling her life. Produced by longtime manager Sue Cameron, the film has been in the making for more than 15 years.
(Photo by Baron/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)“I wanted her to be able to experience all of the stardom all over again,” Cameron told People magazine, praising director Alexandre Philippe for capturing Novak’s true spirit. “Nobody knows who she really is, nobody knows what she went through, the disasters in her childhood, and we cover all of that.”
A Life Beyond the Spotlight
(Photo by Columbia Pictures/Getty Images)By the 1980s, Novak shifted her focus entirely to painting and caring for animals. She settled in Oregon’s Rogue River Valley, a place she calls her true home. “I needed the Pacific Ocean to inspire me, the animals, the beauty,” she shared with People magazine.
For Novak, the recognition in Venice feels like a full-circle moment. “She always wanted to be an artist rather than an actress,” Cameron says. “So as soon as she could escape from Hollywood, she went back to being the poet and the painter. That’s who she really is.”
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