Monia Barbaro, on screen now in Luca Guadagnino’s Artificial, looked every bit the movie star in a sultry Armani Privé gown, as did Alexa Demie in a Chanel dress that invoked the sartorial spirit of Cher. Demie’s aquamarine look, Teyana Taylor’s similarly hued Schiaparelli couture, and Swift’s powdery blue frock were among a handful of disruptors in an evening where black and white dominated the carpet. Kendall Jenner and Hunter Schafer, in Valentino and Prada, respectively, wore two of the evening’s most compelling arguments for black and white evening attire.
Whitney Peak and Sarah Paulson brought some much-welcome texture from the runway to the red carpet, both in looks from the spring-summer 2027 collections. The former was in Diotima by Rachel Scott and the latter in Ferragamo by Maximilian Davis. Kim Kardashian opted for an Old Hollywood look in a vintage Balenciaga dress from 1951.
The Academy Museum gala has quickly become one of the most star-studded events of the second half of the year, serving as a soft opening to the upcoming awards season. This year, the gala was co-chaired by Robert Rodriguez, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw, and Tom Ford, and it honored Charlize Theron, Colman Domingo, and John Carpenter. The night ended with a special performance from Swift, the first time her The Life of a Showgirl hit, “The Fate of Ophelia,” was presented live.