Mara Venier

Mara Povoleri (born 20 October 1950), better known as Mara Venier (pronounced [ˈmaːra veˈnjɛr]), is an Italian actress and television presenter.

Mara Venier
Mara Venier in 2008
Born	Mara Olga Povoleri (1950-10-20) 20 October 1950 Venice, Italy
Nationality	Italian
Occupations	Actress television presenter
Years active	1971–present
Spouses	Francesco Ferracini (div.) Jerry Calà ​ ​ (m. 1984; div. 1985)​ Nicola Carraro ​ (m. 2006)​
Partner	Armand Assante
Children	Elisabetta Ferracini Paolo Capponi

Career

Venier made her debut with a main role in Diario di un italiano, a TV-series based on the novel Wanda written by Vasco Pratolini. She later starred in several films and TV-series, including Nanni Loy's Testa o croce and Pacco, doppio pacco e contropaccotto. She debuted as television hostess at 38, in the musical show Una rotonda sul mare, but her television career was launched in 1993 with the show Domenica in that she hosted until 1996 and again in 2001, 2002 and between 2004 and 2006, in 2013, and once again from 2018.

Filmography

Films

Film performances with year released, title, role played and notes

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1973	Diario di un italiano	Wanda
1974	La badessa di Castro	Giovanni's lover	Cameo appearance
	Abbasso tutti, viva noi	Elisa
1976	Evil Thoughts	Miss Bocconi
1979	Un'emozione in più	Daniela
1980	Zappatore	Nancy Barker
1981	E noi non faremo Karakiri	Serena
1982	Heads I Win, Tails You Lose	Teresa	Segment "La pecorella smarrita"
1983	Al bar dello sport	Rossana
1984	Chewingum	Emanuela Raveggi
1987	Animali metropolitani	Esmeralda
	Sweets from a Stranger	Stella
	Kamikazen: Last Night in Milan	Caterina De Lellis
1988	Delitti e profumi	Sister Melania
1989	Night Club	Luciana
	Il ritorno del grande amico	Alessandra
1993	Pacco, doppio pacco e contro paccotto	Mrs. Scarano
1998	Paparazzi	Herself	Cameo appearance
2008	Torno a vivere da solo	Herself	Cameo appearance
2011	Vacanze di Natale a Cortina	Herself	Cameo appearance
2015	Burning Love	Herself	Cameo appearance
2024	Diamanti †		Completed

Television

Television performances with year released, title, role played and notes

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1973	Door into Darkness	Daniela Moreschi	Episode: "La bambola"
1975	Diagnosi	Lucia	Episode: "Colpo basso"
1982	Un gusto molto particolare	Mara	Television film
1986	Atelier	Valerie Valle	Episode: "Vanità"
1987–1990	Candid Camera Show	Herself/ Co-host	Comedy show (seasons 2–5)
1987	Portami la luna	Fleur	Television film
	Professione vacanze	Olimpia	Recurring role; 4 episodes
	La famiglia Brandacci	Maria Antonia	Television film
1988	Troppo forti	Herself/ Host	Variety show
1989	Tutti in palestra	Mara	Miniseries
1990	Una rotonda sul mare	Herself/ Host	Musical show (season 2)
1991	...E compagnia bella...	Herself/ Host	Talk show
1991–1992	Cantagiro	Herself/ Co-host	Annual music festival
1992	Ora di punta	Herself/ Host	Talk show
1993	1993 Giffoni Film Festival	Herself/ Host	Annual ceremony
1993–present	Domenica In	Herself/ Host	Talk show (seasons 18–21, 26–27, 29–30, 38, 43–present)
1994	Vota la voce	Herself/ Guest host	Musical show (season 21)
1994–1997	Luna Park	Herself/ Host	Daily game show (Venier hosted only wednesday episodes)
1995	La voce del cuore	Stefania	Main role; 4 episodes
	Telegatto 1995	Herself/ Host	Annual ceremony
1995–1996	La Zingara	Herself/ Host	Daily game show (season 1)
1996	Il goal del Martin pescatore	Francesca	Television film
1996, 2011	La partita del cuore	Herself/ Co-host	Annual sports event
1997	Donna sotto le stelle	Herself/ Co-host	Fashion show (season 12)
	Ciao Mara	Herself/ Host	Talk show
1998	Ritornare a volare	Eleonora	Miniseries
	Canzoni sotto l'albero	Herself/ Host	Musical show (season 7)
2000	Fantastica italiana	Herself/ Host	Talent show (season 5)
2002–2003	Il castello	Herself/ Co-host	Game show
2003	Telefonate al buio	Herself/ Host	Game show
2007–2008; 2015–2018	L'isola dei famosi	Herself/ Regular guest	Reality show (seasons 5–6, 10–11, 13)
2007, 2010	Concerto di Natale	Herself/ Host	Annual concert
2009	La fattoria	Herself/ Interviewer	Reality show (season 4)
2010–2013	La vita in diretta	Herself/ Host	Talk show (seasons 21–23)
2010	L'anno che verrà	Herself/ Co-host	New Year's Eve special
2014–2017	Tú sí que vales	Herself/ Popular judge	Talent show (seasons 2–4)
2015	Striscia la notizia	Herself/ Guest host	Variety show (season 28)
2019–2020	La porta dei sogni	Herself/ Host	Talk show
2021	Zecchino d'Oro	Herself/ Host	Musical show (season 63)
2024	Gloria	Herself	Episode: "Il piano"
	Le stagioni dell'amore	Herself/ Host	Reality show

Controversy over the Rai Statement on the Hamas Attack (2024)

On February 12, 2024, Mara Venier found herself at the center of controversy after reading a statement by Rai's CEO, Roberto Sergio, during an episode of Domenica In. The statement expressed solidarity with the people of Israel and the Jewish community, honoring the victims of the Hamas attacks on October 7. Below is the full text of the statement:

"I express my total solidarity with the people of Israel and the Jewish community, and my heartfelt thoughts go to the many children, women, and men who lost their lives in the attack on October 7. Rai is deeply committed to keeping alive the memory of those innocent victims and all those who are still being held hostage by Hamas."

At the end of the reading, Venier added, "These are the words of our CEO, which we all obviously share." This comment triggered strong backlash, with accusations of bias and omission regarding Palestinian victims, sparking debates on social media and among television audiences.

The incident was criticized by various political figures, including Andrea Orlando of the Democratic Party, who described Rai's stance as "narrow-minded" and "embarrassing." Protests were also held in several Italian cities; in Naples, pro-Palestinian groups gathered outside the local Rai office, leading to clashes with the police.

Artists and public figures also voiced their disagreement with the statement broadcast live. Rapper Ghali accused Rai of lacking balance, stating that "a public broadcaster should not take such a one-sided position in a conflict as complex as this." Similarly, Dargen D'Amico criticized Rai for omitting mention of Palestinian suffering, saying that "ignoring one part of the story contributes to dehumanizing those who are already victims of war."

In her defense, Mara Venier explained that her role as a host includes reading official statements from the broadcaster and that her additional comment reflected an institutional position. However, the episode sparked a debate about Rai's role as a public service and its handling of pluralism in sensitive contexts such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

External links

• Mara Venier at IMDb