The 23 Best Red Carpet Fashion Moments of 2022
From Bella Hadid’s best vintage to Taylor Russell in Schiaparelli couture.
What will we remember when looking back on the red carpets of 2022? The list will, no doubt, include one of the following moments: Blake Lively’s gown, which turned the Met Gala stairs into Grand Central Station’s celestial ceiling; Jodie Turner-Smith’s complete takeover of the Venice Film Festival; or Bella Hadid’s vintage parade at Cannes. But in between those standouts, there were still loads of hidden gems. Giveon’s tweed Chanel suit at the Grammys had us rethinking the brand’s lack of menswear, while Emma Corrin’s Met Gala ensemble reminded us that, sometimes, fashion needs to be a little bit silly. This was the year of Jean Paul Gaultier and Schiaparelli couture, Kylie Jenner flexing her access at every opportunity, and Zendaya keeping us on our toes. Red carpet staples like Tilda Swinton and Lady Gaga continued to do what they do best, while newcomers like Quannah Chasinghorse and Taylor Russell dashed the status quo. Looking back at the movie premieres, award shows, and galas over the past year, it’s clear 2022 was a time for referencing the past, both with new designs and vintage finds, while also breaking barriers—especially when it came to menswear and diverse representation. Here are the 20 red carpet fashion moments from 2022 that we’ll still be thinking about well into 2023.
Fanning loves nothing more than some old Hollywood inspiration, so it was really fun to see her embrace a more traditionally masculine version of that aesthetic at the Screen Actors Guild Awards.
The breakout star of Squid Game put a playful spin on her custom sequin gown from Louis Vuitton by pairing it with a bespoke floral headband also from the maison.
Since Lady Gaga wasn’t promoting a film or album this year, we saw a lot less of her on the red carpet—but when she did make an appearance she did not disappoint. Take this custom emerald green Ralph Lauren gown, which she paired with Tiffany & Co. jewels and her classic Pleasers.
Bella Hadid’s Cannes run this year was one for the ages, and it’s hard to pick a favorite, but this sculptural gown designed by Gianni Versace in 1987 may just take the cake.
Once again, Zendaya had a heavily successful red carpet year, but it was this Bob Mackie fall 1998 dress, which she wore to the Time 100 Gala in June that really blew us away.
It’s extremely rare to see Chanel take on menswear. But if Giveon’s tweed suit at the 2022 Grammys is an example of what the maison has to offer in the men’s space, hopefully 2023 brings with it more opportunities for Virginie Viard to flex that muscle.
While many people ignored the theme of this year’s Met Gala, no one can accuse Blake Lively of such a crime. The actress fully embodied Grand Central Station, the Empire State Building, and the Statue of Liberty (oxidation and all) in her transformative Versace gown.
Emma Stone proved that you can indeed wear your wedding dress again. Louis Vuitton’s creative director Nicolas Ghesquière originally designed the feather-trimmed frock Stone wore to the 2022 “Gilded Glamour” Met Gala for Stone’s 2020 wedding to Dave McCarey. (The Oscar winner wore it to the after party of her nuptials.) Its appearance at fashion’s biggest night was a welcome sartorial revival orchestrated by the maison to spotlight some of its archival pieces.
Smit-McPhee told Vanity Fair he wanted something “formal, beautiful and daring yet restrained and palatable,” for his first Academy Awards. Turns out, he was right on the money.
The days of Jared Leto in Alessandro Michele’s Gucci are, unfortunately, behind us. But at least this cream-colored three-piece tux with silver shoes will live on forever.
Not only was this dress completely upcycled, but the jewelry and hair piece were custom from Lenise Omeasoo of Antelope Women Designs. The pieces were inspired by the Native community, plus Omeasoo told Vogue that all the “materials were gifted through trade with other Native artists over the years.”
Emma Corrin’s red carpet looks always keep us guessing, and their Met Gala moment was no different. The actor paid tribute to a late-19th century personality known as the King of the Dudes, a man who, according to Corrin, was known to occasionally change outfits no fewer than 40 times between breakfast and dinner.
For her Cannes debut, Anne Hathaway brought one fashion hit after another. But perhaps the greatest look of all was the couture column gown she wore to the premiere of her film Armageddon Time. The Armani Privé dress was made all the more stunning by a showstopping sapphire and diamond necklace from the house’s high jewelry collection.
From the second Glenn Martens’s couture collection for Jean Paul Gaultier dropped, the Internet was dying to see it walk the red carpet. Luckily, Lizzo provided us with this dramatic moment at the MTV Video Music Awards in August.
Billie Eilish’s Met Gala look elicited a range of opinions, but you can’t argue that she didn’t follow the theme. Also, the garments and accessories were all created from upcycled materials, which is always a plus.
We wish we could put Lydia Tár on this list, but unfortunately, she’s a fictional character (and a controversial one at that). Cate Blanchett, though, earned her own spot when she attended the Venice Film Festival in September looking like a high fashion vase.
All we ever want for men’s fashion is to push the envelope even slightly beyond the classic suit, so when Timothée stepped out in Venice wearing this red-hot custom Haider Ackermann backless halter-neck top and trousers, we were more than pleased.
Jodie Turner-Smith’s red carpet run at Venice should go down in celebrity fashion history. It was a bit of a struggle to pick our favorite look of hers from that week, much less the entire year. But in the end, it’s hard to argue for anything other than this simple, yet show-stopping Christopher John Rogers gown, which she wore to the amfAR Gala.
This was the year of Taylor Russell, and it was all but impossible to choose our favorite look of hers from the past twelve months. Ultimately, we decided it has to be this one from Daniel Roseberry’s fall 2022 couture show. According to Harper’s Bazaar, “the jacket alone took five fittings and over 150 hours to perfect.”
While all of the Blackpink girls are represented by high fashion brands, Rosé stood out among the rest of her group mates this year with the help of Saint Laurent. The pinnacle of her style journey came when she wore this chic, elegant look to the LACMA Art + Film Gala in November.
Kylie Jenner really flexed her access when she attended the opening of the Thierry Mugler: Couturissime exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum in not one, but three vintage Mugler pieces. After walking through the show in a coat from the designer’s spring 1997 couture collection she changed into this corseted dress from Mugler’s fall 1995 couture collection. Jenner then accessorized the look with a diamond crown from the 1999 couture show.
Gabrielle Union had many high fashion matching moments with her husband, Dwyane Wade, this year, but when she stepped out solo for the premiere of Strange World, all eyes were on her. The actress looked like a work of art in this Elie Saab fall 2008 dress, which she paired with a beautiful braided hairstyle courtesy of her hairstylist, Issac Poleon.
This is what we expect from a Tilda Swinton red carpet moment: a dress and jacket covered in artwork by her former lover, Scottish artist John Byrne, with a pompadour hairstyle to match. The actress wore the look from Jeffrey’s upcoming autumn fall 2023 collection at the British Fashion Council’s Fashion Awards in December.
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