Elle Fanning Updates the Dress-Over-Pants Trick for 2025

The dress-over-pants trend is all grown up, thanks to Elle Fanning. At the Sentimental Value screening at the London Film Festival on Saturday, Fanning revived the early aughts styling trick in a way that felt fit for the modern day.

Fanning, who stars as an American actor in director Joachim Trier’s new film, slipped into a party-worthy sequin frock from Irish designer Simone Rocha’s spring 2026 collection. The piece featured a scoop neckline, functional pockets, and a drop waist silhouette that sat loosely on Fanning’s figure. Its calf-length cut was long enough to conceivably wear on its own. But Fanning, working with her long-time stylist Samantha McMillen, put on a pair of decidedly baggy trousers underneath.

Due to her dress’s formal length, only a sliver of the actor’s trousers was visible. She finished off her ensemble with black heels and a Cartier timepiece and wore her blonde hair in a high bun with face-framing pieces.

There’s been a surge of fashion girls intent on layering their dresses with pants recently—Miley Cyrus, Jennifer Lawrence, and Gigi Hadid chief among them. But Fanning approached the early aughts trend differently than most—both currently and in the past, too. Instead of intentionally differentiating between her dress and pants, the actor’s ensemble read as one oversized—albeit chic—red carpet ensemble. It departed from the heyday of the dress-over-pants look, when stars would place their tightest and lightest wash jeans under a bright pink dress à la Anne Hathaway at the 2004 premiere of Ella Enchanted.

As someone who’s always had a soft spot for vintage fashion, Fanning just couldn’t resist giving a 2005 red carpet classic a very 2025 twist.