Monica Bellucci, 55, exudes glamour as she attends event in honour of Dolce & Gabbana

She began her career as a fashion model before transitioning to a successful acting career.

And Monica Bellucci cut a glamorous figure as she attended the Taormina: 66 Taormina Film Festival in honour of Dolce & Gabbana on Saturday.

The actress, 55, dressed up for the occasion after several months in lockdown, wearing a burgundy long-sleeved dress.

The garment featured sheer sleeves and a floral print while the film star carried a matching handbag.

Monica added to her look by letting her brunette locks fall loose down her shoulders for the evening.

The Matrix Reloaded star also posed alongside the night’s honourees, designers Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce. 

Monica also gave a speech at one point during the evening as she was seen taking to the stage. 

Monica was seen at the event without her man Nicolas Lefebvre, 36, who she has been believed to be dating since May 2017, four years after her split from ex-husband Vincent Cassell. 

The actress first confirmed she was seeing someone in an interview with Paris Match last November, but stayed coy about her partner’s identity.

Admitting they had been dating a while and things were going well, she said of her new man: ‘The man I share my life with doesn’t have the same job as me, but he travels a lot. His rhythm of life complements mine.’

Asked whether she would consider getting married again, the former Bond girl kept her cards close to her chest.

She said: ‘When you’ve been married twice before, you need to take time to think about it before starting over, to understand why it happened and why you divorced. Let’s just say I’m in a learning phase at the moment.’

Monica was married to fashion photographer Claudio Carlos Basso from 1990 until 1994, and then Matrix star Vincent Cassel from 1999 until 2015.