Tim Burton appears ‘so in love’ as he makes red carpet debut with girlfriend Monica Bellucci

Burton, 65, and Bellucci, 59, first sparked romance rumours in February 2023

Tim Burton and Monica Bellucci have made their red carpet debut as a couple, and fans can’t get over how “in love” the filmmaker looks with the Italian actor.

On Thursday 19 October, the director and model made their first public appearance as a couple at the Diabolik Chi Sei? premiere, held during the 2023 Rome Film Festival in Italy. For the occasion, Burton wore an all-black suit with a black button-up shirt and tie, while Bellucci donned an off-the-shoulder grey dress and matching grey purse.

The following day, the couple hit the festival again for the premiere of Bellucci’s film, Maria Callas: Lettere E Memorie. While walking the red carpet, this time coordinating in matching black ensembles, fans couldn’t help but notice that Burton was seemingly “giggling and kicking his feet” in excitement as he was photographed with Bellucci.

“Tim Burton is so in love and happy,” read the on-screen text over a video of the pair in Rome. In the clip, Burton and Bellucci were seen holding hands as the Beetlejuice director smiled for the cameras. The Batman filmmaker could also be seen holding up Bellucci’s hand and kissing it while talking to a reporter, and bopping up and down the red carpet alongside his girlfriend.

The red carpet video was posted to X - formerly known as Twitter - where one user pointed out how happy Burton seemed in caption. “He’s literally giggling and kicking his feet I can’t,” they wrote.

The post went viral with five million views, as fellow fans also noticed Burton’s “giddy” expression on the red carpet. However, many people joked it was because he managed to spark a relationship with one of the biggest supermodels in the world.

“I would also be that giddy if I bagged Monica Bellucci,” one person responded. “A goddess.”

“It’s Monica Bellucci… who wouldn’t be literally giggling?” said someone else.

“With Monica on my side I’d probably giggle too,” a third person wrote.

Others took the opportunity to applaud Burton, 65, and Bellucci, 59, for their “age-appropriate” relationship, especially in an entertainment industry in which large age gaps between couples are notorious.

“It’s nice to see an age-appropriate Hollywood relationship,” one person said.

Burton and Bellucci first sparked dating rumours in February this year, when they were photographed walking with their arms linked and sharing a kiss on Valentine’s Day. It was rumoured at the time that the pair had actually been dating for four months before they were pictured in public.

The pair initially met 16 years ago at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, but reportedly reconnected at last year’s Lumiere Film Festival in Lyon. During the festival in October 2022, Bellucci was an honorary guest and presented Burton with the Lumiere lifetime achievement award onstage.

Bellucci later confirmed rumours that she’s dating the Edward Scissorhands director in an interview with Elle France published in June. The Matrix Reloaded star admitted that she “loves” the American filmmaker and that their meeting was something that “rarely happens in life”.

“What can I say… I’m glad I met the man, first of all. It’s one of those encounters that rarely happens in life. I know the man, I love him, and now I’m going to meet the director, another adventure begins,” she told Elle France, noting at the time that she was filming Beetlejuice 2 with Burton in London.

“I love Tim,” Bellucci added. “And I have great respect for Tim Burton.”

Burton was previously in a long-term relationship with actor Helena Bonham-Carter. They were together for 13 years before separating in 2014. They share two sons, Billy, 20, and Neil, 16.

Meanwhile, Bellucci has been married twice. She married Italian photographer Claudio Carlos Basso at the age of 20, but they divorced after six months. She married French actor Vincent Cassell in 1999, before their divorce in 2013. They share two daughters, Deva, 19, and Leonie, 13.