Amal Clooney Played Matchmaker For Ellen Barkin And Her New Boyfriend

Amal Clooney is in one of the most high-profile relationships in Hollywood, and now she may be responsible for helping to create another actor-lawyer power couple.

The British barrister married George Clooney last year, and one of the guests at their lavish Venetian wedding was actress Ellen Barkin. At the nuptials, Barkin hit it off with Amal’s colleague, lawyer Ben Emmerson, and after a brief courtship, the two are now reportedly planning their own wedding.

“She is so happy and in love again,” a source told Us Weekly. “Ellen met him at George and Amal’s wedding and they totally hit it off. It happened quickly but she’s totally fallen for him and flies to see him all the time.”

Like Amal Clooney, Emmerson works in human rights and international law, which is what reportedly attracted Ellen Barkin in the first place.

“He is really handsome and smart and charming and swept her off her feet,” said the insider.

There are now reports that Ellen Barkin and Ben Emmerson are engaged though the couple denied the rumors in a statement to E! News.

Ellen Barkin and George Clooney appeared together in Ocean’s Thirteen, and are friends outside their work in Hollywood. Last year, Ellen threw a bridal shower for the soon-to-be Amal Clooney.

But Barkin and George Clooney have a bit of a tricky history as well. At a 2006 event honoring George, Ellen joked that the two had a physical relationship.

“I am the only actress willing to stand here and say, ‘I have f—ed George Clooney’ … I’m very proud of it … If you don’t have chemistry with George Clooney, you need to check your pulse.”

Clooney later clarified that it was just a joke, telling Esquire, “Never.?.?. she’s a great friend.”

Ellen Barkin has been married twice before. She has two children with Irish actor and director Gabriel Byrne, and despite their split, the couple remain on good terms. Byrne even went to Barkin’s second wedding, when she married businessman Ronald Perelman. But Barkin and Perelman split in 2006, and this one was reportedly much nastier. Barkin reportedly received a nearly $4 million payment in exchange for keeping quiet about the split. Sources say that George and Amal Clooney are thrilled that Ellen Barkin and Ben Emmerson have hooked up, with friends saying that they “love them together.”

[Image via NYMag.com]