Purpose over party: Charlize Theron slams Jeff Bezos‘ $50m wedding, claims many in SA dying
Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos depart from the Aman hotel to attend the last party of their wedding celebrations in Venice on 28 June 2025. Actress Charlize Theron pictured at Block Party charity event in Los Angeles over the weekend. Pictures: EPA/ Daniel Aniel dal Zennaro and AFP
Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron highlighted the importance of global issues over glamorous excess with a thinly veiled jab at Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez's wedding extravaganza in Venice over the weekend.
Speaking at her fifth annual Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP) Block Party event in Los Angeles on Saturday, the South African-born star ripped into the A-list wedding guests, saying 'they suck'.
'I think we might be the only people who did not get an invite to the Bezos wedding. But that's OK because they suck and we're cool.'
As the crowd applauded her remarks, the 49-year-old actress reportedly added: 'Yeah, f–k them'.
Charlize Theron: Bold Bezos wedding statement at Block Party
Theron's comment, though delivered with her signature wit, wasn't just a throwaway line.
South African-American actress and film producer Charlize Theron arrives at the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP) Block Party 2025 held at the Universal Studios Backlot in Universal City, Los Angeles, California. Picture: Image Press Agency / NurPhoto via AFP
According to Hollywood Reporter, the Old Guard 2 star quickly pivoted to a serious tone, thanking her guests for attending the CTAOP event 'especially when the world feels like it's burning, because it is'.
Burning issues: 'It's personal' – Theron
She emphasised pressing global issues, stating: 'Here in Los Angeles, in the US and across the globe, we're moving backwards fast.
'Immigration policy has destroyed the lives of families, not criminals; women's rights are becoming less and less every day; queer and trans lives are increasingly being erased; and gender-based violence is on the rise.
'This isn't just policy, it's personal.'
Trump's foreign aid cuts
According to Variety, the Academy Award winner claimed many people in South Africa have 'already' died without US aid.
Although she didn't mention US President Donald Trump by name, the actress appeared to reference efforts by him and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to cut foreign aid spending through United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funds.
'Foreign aid cuts brought HIV and Aids programmes in my home country of South Africa to an absolute standstill. All of this is not just detrimental, it's dangerous,' Theorn told Variety's Mark Malkin at the charity event.
'People will lose their lives. Many have already, unfortunately, and at a frightening rate. It's absolutely heartbreaking to see this kind of unnecessary suffering.'
Charlize Theron's Block Party: Focus on impact
The CTAOP Block Party, held to raise funds for Theron's nonprofit organisation, featured a performance by Reneé Rapp and a live 'Hot Ones' segment with Theron and her Old Guard 2 co-star KiKi Layne.
By juxtaposing her fundraiser with the Bezos wedding, the charity event underscored Theron's deep-rooted commitment to advocacy over Hollywood glitz and glamour.
Bezos $50m wedding vs CTAOP's mission
The extravagance of the 61-year-old Amazon founder's $50-million (about R889.4 million) Venice wedding celebrations, is in stark contrast to the CTAOP's mission to support youth health and safety in South Africa.
Charlize Theron poses with British actor David Oyelowo and his wife British actress, Jessica Oyelowo, as they attend the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project 2025 Block Party at Universal Studios backlot in North Hollywood, California on 28 June 2025. Picture: Unique Nicol/ AFP
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez's wedding bash
Bezos and Lauren Sánchez, a former TV journalist and helicopter pilot, tied the knot on Friday, 27 June in a lavish three-day celebration in Venice.
With a net worth estimated by Forbes to be $226.7 billion, the executive chair of the e-commerce giant is rumoured to have spent a staggering $50-million for the wedding,
The event boasted a star-studded guest list of more than 200, including A-listers like Oprah Winfrey, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kim and Khloé Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Tom Brady and Orlando Bloom.
Held on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, the wedding featured a custom Dolce & Gabbana wedding gown for Sánchez, a performance by Matteo Bocelli and over-the-top festivities, including a welcoming party at the Chiostro Madonna dell'Orto and a final celebration at the Arsenale, a former medieval shipyard.
Charlize Theron's remarks spark cheers and controversy
Theron's remarks sparked a mix of reactions on social media with some supporters praising her for calling out the disconnect between celebrity excess and global crises such as immigration and gender-based violence.
One X user commented: 'Charlize is out here speaking truth while the A-listers sip champagne in Venice.'
Others, however, dismissed her comments as a sign of envy: 'Theron shouldn't worry. She can go to his next wedding.'
Bezos-Sanchez wedding: Venice mass protests
Venice itself was divided over the wedding.
While city officials welcomed the economic boost, with 80% of provisions sourced from local vendors like Rosa Salva and Laguna B, many residents felt the event epitomized overtourism and inequality.
As per Page Six, the 'No Space for Bezos' campaign group threatened to clog canals with inflatable crocodiles, and posters featuring Bezos' head on a rocket appeared across the city.
Last week, Greenpeace Italy unfurled a banner in St Mark's Square reading: 'If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax,' while a dummy of Bezos was tossed into the Grand Canal, clutching an oversized Amazon package.
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