Malia Obama Sneaks Into the Stranger Things Premiere in Cool Girl Style

Malia Obama has come a long way since her days in the White House. The former First Daughter is a burgeoning director and writer in her own right, and something of a stealth style icon. Last night, Obama continued to refine her red carpet fashion sense as she made a surprise appearance at the Stranger Things season 5 premiere.

Stepping out in Los Angeles, Obama had slipped into an all-white ensemble that was an untraditional take on fall layering. The look started with a maxi dress featuring cut-outs along the bust and hips. Over top, she layered a matching mutated cardigan with an asymmetric hemline. She scrunched the sleeves for a casual effect. Glam was kept minimal in the form of dewy, glowing skin and a braided updo with face-framing pieces.

While the Harvard graduate skipped the red carpet, she was in good company at the premiere. The Stranger Things cast—Millie Bobby Brown, Sadie Sink, Winona Ryder, and Maya Hawke, chief among them—showed out in their best goth-tinged designer fashions.

Malia has been splitting her time between New York and Los Angeles. The 27-year-old has been making strides in her professional career, too. She debuted her short film, The Heart, at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2024, an occasion that also marked her solo red carpet debut. There, she went the cool girl route in a layered look and a Timothée Chalamet–esque skinny scarf.

A few months later, Obama brought her short to the American Film Festival in Deauville, France, where she had her most high-fashion moment to date. She attended the festival in a Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood dress, done in varying plaid fabrics and the label’s signature corsetry. On the red carpet, Obama said she doesn’t know “much about fashion”—that Westwood dress, and last night’s outfit, certainly suggest otherwise.