Keke Palmer Dips Back Into the Bombshell ’90s

Keke Palmer is taking red carpet inspiration from runway royalty. At the premiere of her new film, The Pickup, last night, the actor continued her streak of archival wears in an Atelier Versace gem from the 1990s that Naomi Campbell wore right after it debuted during Milan Fashion Week.

Palmer, working with celebrity stylist Molly Dickson, stepped out in Los Angeles in a sheer LBD from the Italian label’s fall 1996 collection. The sleeveless piece featured a one-shoulder neckline and a long maxi skirt that pooled on the red carpet. The headline was the intricately placed beading that highlighted Palmer’s figure. The detail extended throughout the dress and created a see-through effect along the bust and midsection.

Palmer committed to the ’90s aesthetic with her styling choices. She wore a dazzling choker necklace and diamond earrings and sported her hair in a sky-high updo with pin curls.

While the dress originally debuted with an asymmetric long sleeve, Palmer’s version was slightly altered along the neckline. Campbell was one of the first stars to wear the piece in 1996 when she attended the Night of Stars event in New York City. Donatella Versace, naturally, matched the model in a sheer look of her own at the event.

The collection, which featured an array of nude illusion dresses like Palmer’s, was one of Gianni Versace’s last offerings for his eponymous line prior to his passing in 1997.

Palmer’s archival Versace is just the latest rare find in what has been a year full of vintage treasures. And while she’s worn her fair share of Nicolas Ghesquière-era Balenciaga and '90s Jean Paul Gaultier, this isn’t the first time she’s borrowed vintage Versace that comes with a celebrity track record.

At the 2025 Vanity Fair Oscars Party in March, Palmer slipped into a mesh dress from Atelier Versace’s spring 2004 line. Not only was the piece peak 2000s Versace—with the fishnet bodice and low-rise skirt to match—it was worn by Christina Aguilera in 2003, just months after it debuted on the Milan runways. And then in June, Palmer wore a fiery dance dress to appear on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The maker? Versace, of course, specifically from its spring 2002 couture offering.

These days, Palmer has a strict, vintage-only policy when it comes to red carpet dressing.