For decades, Hollywood has been the ultimate spectacle. The entertainment industry lures audiences into escapism and continues to captivate them in the real world. One current trend that exemplifies this is celebrity method dressing.
Hollywood is no stranger to being a topic of conversation. It is the heart of pop culture and artistic media. Cinema in particular serves to enthrall spectators.
And the allure doesn’t end when the credits roll. The idea of life imitating art has made its way into press tours and red carpet appearances. Past fashion looks prioritized luxury and high fashion, but now, they are being used to spark conversation.
Actors are paying homage to their characters through unique stylistic choices. Not only does this keep the art alive; it also generates more excitement. It’s an effective marketing tactic to promote new films.
Countless celebrities are employing this tactic as they don iconic pieces that honor their work.
Zendaya
Zendaya has been famous for dressing to showcase her latest project. These fashion statements are used to promote the film’s plot, her personal roles, or popular features of the project.
The Drama
For the 2026 film The Drama, a romantic film she stars in alongside Robert Pattinson, Zendaya gave an emphatic “I do” in terms of infusing creativity into her fashion. She connected her looks in a series of styles that captured the traditional wedding refrain of “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.”
This was a clever way to exemplify the film’s main theme: the wedding between the two main characters. The phrase has been widely popular for decades as a wedding tradition, with many brides incorporating it into their real weddings. This proved to be successful from the start, with fans immediately picking up on it.
For the “something old” element, Zendaya turned to her own archives. She wore a bridal Vivienne Westwood gown that she debuted at the 2015 Oscars. The dress maintains Westwood’s signature style. The off-the-shoulder neckline, corset, and smaller train are all common features within her designs. The dress also reflects old-fashioned bridal styles.
Her decision to wear a “bridal” dress from her extensive archive reinforces the film’s theme. It both speaks to the storyline and embodies a classic wedding refrain.
For the “something new” look, Zendaya wore a custom-made Louis Vuitton dress. This sleek and classical look featured a long, contoured sleeved dress with a lengthy bow for flair. She accessorized with David Morris jewels and a short updo.
The look sparked conversation about both the movie and her personal life, amid rumors that she and her fiancé, Tom Holland, may have already married. Fans questioned whether the bridal style reflected the film’s themes or real life. Either way, the look stood out for its classic elegance.
During an interview on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Zendaya stated that she had had her heart set on wearing Cate Blanchett’s black Armani Privé gown, originally worn by Blanchett at last year’s Venice Film Festival. The dress is low-cut, with embellishment accents on the sides and a structured waist.
When considering what she would wear for the “borrowed” look, this dress immediately came to mind. It’s beautiful on its own, but it’s also thematically resonant.
Two of Zendaya’s looks fall into the “something blue” category.
She debuted the first one on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon: a blue sheer design by Zimmerman. She paired the lingerie-style piece with a triangle bar latched onto a fitted corset.
However, this was not the only look to exhibit “something blue.” At the New York premiere of The Drama, Zendaya stepped out in a blue and black ombre strapless Schiaparelli ballgown. This dress was part of the 2026 couture collection, and it concluded Zendaya’s series of creative wedding looks.
Looks of the past
This is far from the first time Zendaya has utilized fashion to promote her work. After starring in Challengers, she sported myriad tennis-themed pieces that paralleled the film’s characters and themes.
The film depicts a stark contrast between the characters and their main priorities. Some argue that two of the characters pursue interests beyond tennis. However, Zendaya’s character, Tashi, remains completely hyperfixated on the sport.
Following the release of the Dune movies, Zendaya’s red carpet appearances and interview looks aligned with the overall aesthetic of the films. In particular, deep, sandy neutrals mirrored the setting. The silhouettes and accents further emphasized the films’ dystopian nature.
Spider-Man
For each Spider-Man film she starred in–Homecoming (2017), Far From Home (2019), and No Way Home (2021)–her looks symbolized different aspects of the story. In 2017, her style was more subtle, featuring elegant dresses with playful stripes and patterns throughout the press tour. For Far From Home, she gave a simple nod to the iconic suit by wearing its key colors, red and black—a sleek way to promote the film on the carpet.
Zendaya’s fashion in the most recent Spider-Man film brought various aspects of the film to life amidst circulating discussion about the return of two villains from the first Spiderman franchise (starring Tobey Mcquire). As a tribute to the iconic suit from one of the original villains, Zendaya wore a black dress with a scorpion-style silver back piece. Her nude and black spider web dress was another tribute that proved equally popular.
Zendaya has become a standout star for promoting her films through her fashion choices, garnering greater audience investment by giving them something unique to talk about.
In particular, her style adds a new layer for lovers of film and fashion. Fashion fans are eager to see what trends she will adopt next. Meanwhile, film fans puzzle over potential easter eggs. What do the accents indicate about the plot of the film? Do they hint at any plot points, themes, or characters? What does this mean for the arc of Zendaya’s character’?
Wicked
Though Zendaya has become widely popular for her fashion, she is far from the only celebrity to embrace this phenomenon. The press tours for the Wicked movies likewise referenced the original film.
Wicked and Wicked: For Good are film adaptations of the famous Broadway musical Wicked. The story follows the characters of Oz, originally introduced in the 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz.
Both the movie and the musical have accrued large, loyal followings. From iconic colors to the history behind the tale, there were endless opportunities to showcase beloved details through fashion.
The iconic witches of Oz
The two standouts of the press tour were Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, who play Glinda the Good and Elphaba (later known as the Wicked Witch of the West), respectively.
They were most frequently seen wearing their characters’ main colors. Grande leaned into light pink, flowy styles. Erivo, on the other hand, had much sharper, darker looks. She paired black or green with bold accessories, wearing gloves that resembled witchy hands, hats that alluded to a staple piece of her character, and green to display the color of her character’s skin.
Although many of their looks were straightforward, the two actresses hinted at the film in more subtle ways as well. For one of their red carpet appearances, they focused less on their individual roles and more on the story behind the setting of the film: Oz.
Setting the scene of Oz
For one red carpet appearance, Grande stepped out in a buttery yellow gown, evoking the yellow brick road leading to the Wizard of Oz, and tinted green glasses, evoking the Emerald City.
Erivo opted for a black dress with a matching headpiece, clearly capturing the essence of the Wicked Witch of the West. She also sported witchy gloves and hand accessories. Finally, her dress contained touches of bronzed metal accents that made the look even more “Oz-ian.”
Jonathan Bailey
Jonathan Bailey, who plays Fiyero, embarked on similar stylistic efforts, incorporating details from the original film, the musical, and the current films.
Though his character doesn’t necessarily have a signature color, he didn’t let that stop him. He wore yellow with a white suit to depict the yellow brick road.
At another event, he stepped out in red shoes and added a poppy accent to his suit, a look reminiscent of the iconic red ruby slippers worn by Dorothy, as well as a popular scene from the movie where Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion hit an obstacle in their journey across a poppy field.
Bailey had two looks that harkened back to the beloved musical as well. For one appearance, he wore a silver suit, the same color as Dorothy’s slippers in the stage adaptation. He also wore a look that showcased a steampunk aesthetic, a heavy influence on the original ensemble costumes in the show.
While he wore elevated fashion styles on the red carpet, Bailey’s interviews honored the history of the film in much more casual ways. In the majority of his appearances, he wore T-shirts with recognizable visual elements from the film’s history.
The future of fashion
Hollywood is constantly striving to spark public discourse.
This newfound intersection of fashion and film is sure to continue surprising and exciting audiences in the years to come.
With an abundance of films to look forward to, talented designers, and bold celebrities, the future of fashion on the red carpet is brighter than ever before.
