George and Amal Clooney looked every inch the doting couple as they stepped out for the Venice Film Festival last week. George, 63, and Amal, 46, attended the premiere of his new film, Wolfs, in the same Italian city where they tied the knot nearly a decade ago.

The actor, who looked dapper in a black suit, and the human rights lawyer, who opted for a stunning yellow dress, were joined by George’s co-star Brad Pitt and his girlfriend Ines de Ramon, who made their red carpet debut after nearly two years of dating. George and Amal had previously enjoyed an evening out with Brad, 60, and Ines, 31, with the couples going for a double date at Venice restaurant Ristorante Da Ivo.

The weekend marked a rare show of public unity for George and Amal, who have reportedly been spending an increasing amount of time apart. Back in June, insiders revealed that their busy schedules meant that they were living very separate lives.

A source told us, ‘George has lost none of his appetite for directing and acting. If anything, work is something he enjoys more than ever these days, because filmmakers and talent bosses know that there’s no point pitching George anything that’s not top of the lot. He has a ton of brand endorsement, real estate and other ongoing business commitments that require his personal attention on a daily basis, and he’s writing so much of his own material too.

‘He’s a perfectionist and demands perfection from everybody who steps up to work for him. He’s also extremely hands on; nothing gets through if it doesn’t pass his personal sniff test. Amal is very much the same, in that she loves her job and sees it as being a real calling, so nothing is taken on without a lot of research and careful consideration beforehand.’

However, the source explained at the time that the couple – who tied the knot in 2014 and are parents to seven-year-old twins Ella and Alexander – were on the same page, and while they’re often ships in the night, it was working for them.

‘One of the big reasons that Amal and George work so well is because they’re so independently successful and secure in their own individual orbits,” the source said. ‘Fortunately, they do have great nannies – their houses are like mini resorts in themselves. Most days, they get together at the end of the day for dinner and catch-up time, but – if they need to work into the night or head off to a business meeting – that’s not something they sweat about. It’s an open joke among their friends that George and Amal live this incredible separate life under the same roof much of the time, but they just take it in their stride and are confident with how things are.’

They added, ‘They’re one family, but George and Amal live in two very separate worlds for 90 per cent of the day, and they seem to like it that way. They both have their own sets of staff and friends, so there’s not a lot of crossover. The only time they really overlap is when they’re on vacation. They’re both hardcore workaholics who love nothing more than putting in 18-hour days on projects they’re passionate about. If the family has one motto these days, it’s work hard, play rarely.’

But in August, it was claimed that they were starting to up their efforts in a bid to reconnect. ‘George has vowed to up his game when it comes to his marriage. He’s making way more time to connect with Amal because, truth be told, he has let that slip a little, and it suddenly dawned on him that they’re becoming more like roommates than lovers,’ an insider said.

‘She’s still young and vibrant, and George can’t exactly ignore the age gap between them. He’s starting to show his age, and it’s slightly freaking him out. If he wants to hang on to her, he needs to make a big effort to keep sweeping her off her feet. They’re having romantic lunches and dinners, and are going on long walks. He’s also throwing himself into doing sweet things like surprising her in bed with breakfast and buying her favourite perfume. Happy wife, happy life is his motto, and he’s putting his money and time where his mouth is.’

George has certainly been a busy man. As well as promoting Wolfs, he recently filmed his new Netflix show, Jay Kelly, in Tuscany and is also working on an upcoming drama series for Paramount+, which he’s set to direct. Next year, he’ll make his Broadway debut in the stage adaptation of his 2005 acclaimed drama, Good Night, and Good Luck.

Meanwhile, Amal, whose previous clients include Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, recently served on a panel for the ICC over war crimes in Gaza. As well as constantly taking on new cases, she’s also got her hands full with philanthropic work, having launched the Get Her There campaign, which seeks to educate and empower teenage females alongside Michelle Obama and Melinda French Gates. She also oversees her and George’s human rights charity, the Clooney Foundation for Justice.

The source explained that while they’re both high in demand, they’re devoted as ever to reignite the spark. ‘Amal is a lot better at time management than George, so it’s tough for her to have a lot of sympathy for his long work hours,’ they said. ‘She can have all sorts of balls in the air and still make time for him, so she has – in the past – got impatient with him if he can’t do the same. But he’s now vowed to cut back on the hours he’s working. She’s the light of his life and he doesn’t want to take her for granted.’

The couple are set to celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary on September 27, so what better time to pull out all the stops?