Sophia Loren is currently in recovery after undergoing emergency surgery for a fractured hip resulting from a fall at her residence in Geneva, Switzerland, which occurred on a Sunday. The esteemed Italian actress, renowned as Italy's most celebrated living film star and who recently turned 89 on September 20th, sustained multiple fractures in the unfortunate accident. According to various reports, the incident took place on a Sunday morning.
Italian national news agency Ansa reported on Sunday afternoon that Sophia Loren had successfully undergone surgery and would now require a brief period of convalescence, followed by comprehensive rehabilitation.
The injury was described as "serious fractures" affecting various parts of her hip and femur. Her agent, Andrea Giusti, confirmed that Sophia Loren's two sons, Carlo and Edoardo Ponti, were by her side throughout this challenging period. Giusti conveyed reassuring news, stating that "The surgery went perfectly, and we only need to wait," in an email response to Variety.
News of Sophia Loren's hospitalization initially emerged from a restaurant bearing her name, which was scheduled for inauguration on Tuesday in the Italian city of Bari. Furthermore, the iconic actress was set to receive an honorary citizenship from Bari, a southern city where she came out of semi-retirement in 2020 to film her last movie, "The Life Ahead," a Netflix original directed by her son, Edoardo Ponti. In "The Life Ahead," Sophia Loren portrayed a former prostitute and Holocaust survivor who forms a profound connection with a Senegalese orphaned street child.
For her remarkable performance, she was awarded Italy's prestigious David di Donatello Award for Best Actress.
Born in the Neapolitan suburb of Pozzuoli, Sophia Loren first gained widespread recognition in Vittorio De Sica's anthology film "The Gold of Naples" (1954), where she played a captivating pizza vendor. Following her marriage to producer Carlo Ponti and her relocation to Los Angeles in the late 1950s, her career soared, and she starred in numerous Hollywood classics alongside iconic American actors such as Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, and Cary Grant. Nevertheless, she continued to work in the Italian film industry.
One of her notable roles in Italy was in "Two Women" (1960), where she portrayed a young widow attempting to shield her daughter from the horrors of World War II. Additionally, she delivered a compelling performance in "Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" (1963), which earned the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1965. Sophia Loren's outstanding contributions to cinema were recognized with an honorary Oscar in 1990.
Sophia Loren's most recent public appearance was on September 2nd, just earlier this month, during the Armani "One Night Only" fashion show held at the Venice Film Festival, where she was the guest of honour. Accompanied by her son Edoardo Ponti and his wife Sasha Alexander, Sophia Loren graced the front row alongside Jessica Chastain, Sydney Sweeney, Ang Lee, and Ava DuVernay.