The 2019 red carpet had its fair share of memorable moments — see the elaborate Met Gala pink carpet entrances of Lady Gaga, Billy Porter and the like — but many celebrities took their sartorial looks a step further, giving a nod to their movie characters through strategic stylistic choices.
The year had no shortage of superhero movies, encouraging actresses like Scarlett Johansson and Brie Larson to have fun with their multiple red carpet looks.
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Larson, who played the titular character in “Captain Marvel” and again in “Avengers: Endgame,” channeled her superhero character on virtually every red carpet. The Oscar-winning actress wore multiple custom dresses that took inspiration from elements of her superhero costume, designed by the likes of Valentino and Rodarte.
Here, WWD looks back to the 10 times actors channeled their characters on the red carpet in 2019.
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1. Lady Gaga
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock The 2018 international press tour for “A Star Is Born” arguably produced some of Lady Gaga’s best red carpet looks of the decade. The Oscar-winner continued her red carpet streak into this year, starting off at the Golden Globes where she gave a nod to Judy Garland’s 1954 version of the film.
Gaga’s voluminous, periwinkle Valentino gown paid homage to the Jean Louis-designed dress that Garland is seen wearing in the original film.
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2. Brie Larson
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Brie Larson took her superhero role of Captain Marvel head on this year, using virtually all of her red carpet appearances to give a sartorial nod to her character.
She attended the “Captain Marvel” Los Angeles premiere in a custom gold Rodarte gown emblazoned with the superhero’s star logo and the film’s London premiere in a custom Valentino gown that gave a nod to the superhero’s uniform. She later attended the film’s New York screening sporting a custom Edie Parker clutch that read “Captain.”
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3. Brie Larson and Scarlett Johansson
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Brie Larson and Scarlett Johansson took their Avengers status a step further at the premiere of “Avengers: Endgame,” pairing their looks with custom jewelry that gave a nod to the film’s infamous Infinity Gauntlet.
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4. Blake Lively
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Blake Lively doesn’t shy away from channeling movie characters on the red carpet, even if she’s not in the movie herself. The actress attended the premiere for “Pokémon Detective Pikachu” — which her husband Ryan Reynolds stars in as the titular character — dressed in a bright yellow Retrofete dress that channeled her husband’s character.
The red carpet moment was also when Lively revealed she was pregnant with her third child, later posting a photo of the look on Instagram with the caption, “PokéMOM”
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5. Taron Egerton
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Taron Egerton channeled Elton John spot on at the premiere of “Rocketman” this summer, wearing a custom denim jacket decorated with multiple patches that he’s seen wearing on-screen. The denim jacket is said to have been inspired by one of John’s own pieces.
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6. Catherine O’Hara
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Catherine O’Hara has a number of memorable performances under her belt after her over 40-year career, but one of the actress’ best-known roles is that of Delia in Tim Burton’s 1988 film, “Beetlejuice.”
O’Hara paid homage to the movie twice this year, wearing two looks that resemble the titular character’s iconic black-and-white striped suit. She first wore a scoop-necked Marc Jacobs dress at the Tony Awards in June, then a black and white color-blocked Greta Constantine dress to the Emmy Awards in September.
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7. Beyoncé
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock The premiere of “The Lion King” produced a number of viral Beyoncé moments — when she met the Duke and Duchess of Sussex alongside Jay-Z at the film’s London premiere and her mother-daughter twinning moment with Blue Ivy at the Los Angeles premiere — but the icon’s buzziest look of the year was at the Wearable Art Gala in June.
Beyoncé attended the gala in a custom Georges Hobeika gold jumpsuit designed with a three-dimensional image of a lion on the bodice. The look gave a nod to Beyoncé’s role of Nala in the film, which was released a few weeks after the gala.
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8. Zendaya
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Zendaya has had a year full of standout red carpet looks, including her Cinderella moment at the Met Gala and her second collaboration with Tommy Hilfiger.
But one of her red carpet looks that made headlines this summer was at the Los Angeles premiere of “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” where Zendaya wore a sequined, backless dress from the Armani Privé spring 2019 couture collection. The dress’ red and black color scheme gave a nod to the new Spider-Man suit that debuted in the film.
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9. Margot Robbie
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Many agreed that Margot Robbie’s casting as Sharon Tate in Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood” was spot-on given her resemblance to the late actress.
Robbie took note of this, regularly paying homage to Tate throughout the film’s press tour by channeling her iconic Sixties’ style. For instance, Robbie attended the film’s Los Angeles premiere in a billowy white Chanel dress and a wavy hairstyle (one of Tate’s signatures) that looked straight from the decade.
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10. Sarah Jessica Parker
Image Credit: REX/Shutterstock Sarah Jessica Parker’s “Sex and the City” character Carrie Bradshaw is undoubtedly one of the biggest television style icons, with many looking to the character as a source of sartorial inspiration.
Parker herself gave a rare nod to the character at the New York City Ballet Fall Fashion Gala in September, where she paired a voluminous hot pink Zac Posen gown with mismatched pink and gold heels from her SJP Collection shoe line. The look paid homage to an episode of the HBO show where the character is seen wearing mismatched pink and blue sandals, one of the many iconic looks to come from the show.
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