Sadie Sink and Carlacia Grant do Archival McQueen, Two Ways

Last weekend, red-carpet darlings had the Alexander McQueen archives on their mind. Sadie Sink and Carlacia Grant both referenced the label’s iconic early-aughts runways in two narratively rich ensembles.

First was Sink, who attended Disney’s D23 Fan Expo in Anaheim, California, on Friday in a design from the brand’s spring 2004 collection. The actor, who will star as Jean Grey in Disney’s upcoming X-Men movie, opted for a sheer patchwork design with a drop waist silhouette and an intricately ruffled skirt. It comes from one of Lee McQueen’s most theatrical runways, which saw models dance down the catwalk in a recreation of Sydney Pollack’s Depression-era dance-marathon film They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?.

With typical McQueen period dressing peppered in, the pieces were decidedly fluid and breathable—comprising silver lamé skirts and feathered gowns. For her red-carpet styling, Sink, who works with stylist Molly Dickson, accessorized with mesh heels and her hair in a low, loose braid. The effect was ethereal and otherworldly. But Sink wasn’t the only star with a deep-rooted McQueen reference in mind.

The following day, at an Outer Banks event in Los Angeles, Carlacia Grant stepped out in another dress plucked from McQueen’s history. This one, however, went back one year further—to spring 2003. Grant, who stars as Cleo in the fifth and final season of the Netflix series, wore a peach-colored gown featuring criss-cross draping around the bodice and a tattered, asymmetrical hem. Styled by Laura Sophie Cox, she finished the look with neutral Jimmy Choo heels and sleek, wet hair—modernizing the dress’s old-world shipwreck aesthetic.

While Grant achieved glowy ease on the red carpet, the original design was daring in its deconstruction, with severe tears and see-through layers. Ultimately, it was key to the show’s overarching aesthetic—full of wet draping, gauzy ruffles, and Elizabethan collars—which charted an eerie, stranded-at-sea narrative.

While vintage Alexander McQueen has long been a statement-making red-carpet pull, the looks worn by Sink and Grant feel decidedly significant. Sink is embracing a new beginning by entering the X-Men cinematic universe. Grant is marking the end of an era with Outer Banks’ final season. Each actor is in the midst of a big career moment—so naturally, archival McQueen was essential.