Amal Clooney gushes over husband George during DVF awards: 'He's a rising star'

Amal Clooney shared a heartwarming anecdote about her and husband George's love story during her presentation at the annual DVF Awards on Thursday.

Amal, a 45-year-old human rights attorney and activist, was among the women honoured at the Venice International Film Festival with the DVF Leadership Award. The event was sponsored by fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg.

Amal dedicated a portion of her acceptance speech to George, 62, who was by her side the entire night and was recognised for her work on behalf of abuse victims throughout the world. The two arrived holding hands and dressed to the nines—he in a black suit and she in a pink lace Christian Dior by John Galliano gown.

“I am here in Venice with my husband; he is a rising star,” Amal quipped to the crowd in attendance before moving on to share a story of what the city means to them as a couple.

“Venice is the place where almost nine years ago we were married," she said. "As we sailed through the city in the last two days, I thought how incredibly lucky I am because somehow our incredibly different worlds collided one day 10 years ago in Lake Como. I just think about the millions of things that had to happen in both of our lives to bring us to that moment and how grateful I am for that luck, my love.”

She continued: “I just wanted to say, you, my love, like this city, take my breath away and you make our lives magical. It is sometimes hard to believe you exist, so thank you for being the brightest light in my life.”

The two were "very affectionate with each other" throughout the evening, according to Italian cinema and art writer Giuseppe Fantasia, who attended the event.

George and Amal have been seen multiple times enjoying Venice in style. On August 29, the couple arrived in the city dressed in matching outfits. Amal wore a floral-print shift dress and slingback heels, while George kept it cool and casual in seersucker pants and a navy blue collared shirt.