The stars of the SAG Awards came armed with what they may have thought was their best fashion, but while some looks rocked, some didn’t quite hit the mark.
The Oscars aren’t here quite yet, but the celebrities looking to finish the awards season strong had another chance to wow everyone with last night’s SAG Awards. Fortunately, there were plenty of looks to talk about, and we even had to narrow it down from our initial looks.
Of course, this isn’t a best-dressed list. That would be too boring, frankly, and leave out opportunities for precious commentary (or snark, as the case may be). So, as with the Golden Globes, we’re here to discuss the most unexpected looks of the night.
Take it away, celebrities.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: (L-R) Sterling K. Brown, winner of Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture for ‘Black Panther’ and Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series for ‘This Is Us;’ Angela Bassett, Lupita Nyong’o, Chadwick Boseman, Danai Gurira, Michael B. Jordan, and Andy Serkis, winners of Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture for ‘Black Panther,’ pose in the press room at the 25th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sarah Morris/Getty Images)
The cast of Black Panther
Is it really unexpected that this cast continues bringing high fashion to the red carpet time after time? Well, no, but they continue to surprise us in new and interesting ways. Even Sterling K. Brown on the end has a little visual texture to his tuxedo. Ignore Andy Serkis; he’s mostly just here too.
We’ll go from left to right here. Angela Bassett has a lot of visual texture going on, and the effect is that … well, let’s just say we hope there were no strong breezes, because a lot of things could have happened there. Lupita Nyong’o usually rocks some color, but props to her for going with the black-and-silver look, as it calls back to Black Panther’s suit in the film. Her hair also looks gorgeous. (Actually, all of the ladies here have fantastic styles that suit their individual ensembles well.)
Chadwick Boseman has no right to look that good in that outfit. Danai Gurira has just enough drama with the feathers up top that the rest of the sleekness of the gown nicely counterbalances it. And, of course, Michael B. Jordan wore a floral harness.
Shall we get a little more detail on the main gentlemen here?
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Chadwick Boseman and Michael B. Jordan, winner of Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture for ‘Black Panther,’ pose in the press room at the 25th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sarah Morris/Getty Images)
You’re welcome.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Henry Golding (L) and Gemma Chan arrive at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Henry Golding and Gemma Chan
We could legitimately repeat much of what we said about the Black Panther cast when it comes to these two (and the rest of the Crazy Rich Asians cast), but Henry Golding and Gemma Chan stood out for a number of reasons.
Ladies first, right? In a lot of ways, this could have gone very Angela Bassett for her — but instead, more like Danai Gurira’s dress, there’s just enough of a contrast between top and bottom that it doesn’t read as too much. That’s also a lovely shade of pink, though the peek of the red heel gives this writer something like a minor conniption.
Golding, meanwhile, could have so quickly gone so disco with this look, but instead, there’s a lot of visual texture to the jacket — enough that it takes it up a notch. Would we perhaps have appreciated his buttoning his shirt up all the way? Well, yeah, but somehow, the shirt’s echoing the lines in his jacket, intentionally or not, and also, this is Henry Golding. Need we say more?
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Alison Brie arrives at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Alison Brie
I would like to briefly present my first reaction to this look, almost completely unedited: “She looks like she may have come in from the Victoria’s Secret show.” This was completely prompted by the fact that her shoulder piece looks like tiny wings. This reaction was reinforced by the fact that she spread them out while on the silver carpet.
Add the bows just under her chest, which aren’t immediately apparent, and you’re left with an unexpectedly detailed look that’s just detailed in the wrong ways.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Emily Blunt attends 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images)
Emily Blunt
Why is Emily Blunt auditioning to be in Janelle Monáe’s video for “PYNK”? More importantly, why is she doing it a year after? Also, are there some anatomy questions we can ask her? Because we’re starting to have some anatomy questions after looking at this dress.
Okay, to be fair, she has found a pink that doesn’t clash with her skin tone, but it’s hard not to read this as particularly Barbie with all of the sequins and this particular shade of pink (down to the matching nail polish). We do covet her earrings and that ring on her hand, though.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Lucy Boynton arrives at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Lucy Boynton
This is neither the real life, nor is it just fantasy. This is … something we’re not sure we have the words for, but we’re absolutely going to try. The big factor is that it’s so visually busy with the floral and polka dot patterns that it actually becomes hard to look at after a little while. In fact, it almost reminds us of the whole pink-and-black trend of the Hot Topic kids of a certain age, but unlike Cody Fern at the Golden Globes, who updated the entire aesthetic, this is just a throwback in a bit of a bad way.
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 27: Lily Tomlin (L) and Jane Fonda attend the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. 480645 (Photo by Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images for Turner)
Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda
Is it fair to say that Jane Fonda is actually giving us our hair goals with that coiffure? Scroll back to Lucy Boynton for a second. Then come back and look at this. This is glorious. So’s the face, actually; she had a great makeup artist. The dress, well … it certainly has some texture to it. It’s not our favorite.
We’re not going to lie, though: Lily Tomlin’s pose here has the kind of energy we want to carry with us at all times. You wish your grandmother could pull a sequined tuxedo jacket over a dress off. Actually, we wish we could just pull this off ourselves, now.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Ellen Wong arrives at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Ellen Wong
Do you see this face? This is the expression of a woman who knows that she has pulled off a dress that might look completely awful on a lesser mortal. Ellen Wong, everyone, is not a lesser mortal. There’s certainly a touch of glamour to this. Matching the silver carpet is certainly a bit of a power move. However, there’s still a little edge, too, particularly in the styling and her ponytail in particular. It makes for a solid contrast that’s just visually striking in all the right ways.
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 27: Nyakim Gatwech attends the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. 480695 (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images for Turner)
Nyakim Gatwech
The longer that this writer looks at this dress, the more she has issues with it, but at first glance, whew. Nyakim Gatwech has a look going here, and she knows how to pose so that we get the maximum effect in photographs. There’s no need for visual contrast in her accessories; instead, the “Queen of Dark,” as she’s nicknamed, is all the contrast we need. That earring is simply gorgeous.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Lyric Ross arrives at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Lyric Ross
Lyric Ross is basically wearing a fan in dress form, and somehow, it works. It’s just so perfectly pretty and lovely, and with a night that definitely included some weird vibes, this is unexpected because it’s a breath of fresh air. Again, we have to complement the simple styling. This dress does a lot of work all on its own. We couldn’t even countenance her having her hair down, lest it go too over-the-top. There’s a nice touch in her earrings also picking up the angles of the gown without replicating them exactly.
Admittedly, we waffle back and forth on the floral details. Some of them look particularly good, but others lose too much of their shape with the folds.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Lady Gaga arrives at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Lady Gaga
The Marilyn Monroe is strong with this one, but thankfully, Lady Gaga isn’t doing a straight Marilyn/The Seven-Year Itch reference, particularly in the styling.
Let’s start with the dress, which is notably longer than the famous one we’re referring to. It also has some unfinished edges, which do give it some texture, but also the result of looking like the gown ran briefly afoul of a shredder.
In terms of styling, the dark lip and nails work here, because of the otherwise light palette she’s working with; it also helps take it away from the siren red we most commonly associate with Marilyn. The hair also is calling back, particularly in the wave, to even earlier eras of Hollywood fashion. Considering that A Star is Born is one of Tinseltown’s oldest stories, it’s a nice touch.
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 27: Eris Baker attends the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Eris Baker
This look may legitimately be this writer’s all out favorite among the younger stars, and this not long after complimenting Lyric Ross. First off, the gown is gorgeous, perfectly pretty and fitting, but it’s the styling that really knocks this out of the park.
The Timberlands alone are fantastic, down to the things written on them — from “Queen” to “Black Girl Magic,” they’re works of art all on their own. Baker posted a photo to Instagram in a mini-slideshow:
Besides that, though, we love her earrings and headscarf.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 27: Emma Stone arrives at the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Emma Stone
I want so badly to love Emma Stone’s ensemble, because we should support ladies being able to wear pants on the red carpet. But these pants? Well, we’re concerned for her feet, first off, since they seem to have gone missing, and the pleats are creating some gnarly shapes around her hips.
Finally, the top feels like it wouldn’t be out of place in The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas, which is an actual film.
Props to her for going for it, though.
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 27: Laverne Cox attends the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. 480645 (Photo by Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images for Turner)
Laverne Cox
This is a dress meant for walking away. Alison Brie wishes she could pull this off, since there are some similarities in shape, but Laverne Cox completely owned it. It’s a lovely shade of red, and all of the back detailing combines for a devastating effect. The front is almost disappointing in comparison (though still very pretty, make no mistake), so please just enjoy this instead:
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 27: Laverne Cox attends the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
What was your favorite SAG Awards look of the night?