Oscars 2021: Fashion returns to the red carpet in times of a pandemic

So long to the sweatpants and hoodies and adios to the athleisure looks! Attendees turning out to the 93rd Academy Awards at LA’s Union Station on Sunday — and their teams of stylists — made an all-out effort to bring old-school glamour back for the final red carpet of the awards-show season. The result was an all-you-can-eat smorgasbord of eye candy that included gowns dripping in gold, sparkling in silver and bursting with eye-popping jelly-bean colours.

Perhaps in a nod to the hardware being distributed to the evening’s winners, the most-eye-catching metallic looks were head-to-toe gold, notably worn by Carey Mulligan (‘Promising Young Woman’) in a midriff-bearing organdy copper Valentino Couture gown embroidered with iridescent sequins that was as voluminous on the bottom as it was spare on the top.

Andra Day (‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’) appeared in a clingy custom Vera Wang Haute gown that flowed around her form like fluid (despite requiring the help of welders to create).

One for the men was Leslie Odom Jr. (‘One Night in Miami ...’), who opted for a gold metallic double-breasted Brioni tuxedo and button-front shirt layered over a black turtleneck. Odom was one of the many men who brought their fashion A-game to this year’s red carpet.

Others included ‘Minari’ actor Alan Kim (left) in a custom Thom Browne look in downtown Los Angeles, who, according to Vulture, walked his dog before awards night. Awww.

From London, ‘Judas and the Black Messiah’s’ Lakeith Stanfield, whose black Saint Laurent jumpsuit and white, wide-collared shirt nearly broke the internet when the look was posted to Twitter.

Metallic embellishments and sparkly crystal touches went beyond gold, though, turning up in some of the day’s other standout looks, including Maria Bakalova (‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm’) in a fairy tale tulle and satin custom confection by Louis Vuitton that featured a deep-V neckline embellished with crystals and silver bead embroidery.

Songwriter Diane Warren (‘The Life Ahead’) impressed in a custom ivory Valentino tuxedo worn with a silver-sequined turtleneck top.

And Regina King (‘One Night in Miami ...’) in a sky-blue custom-made Louis Vuitton duchesse satin gown embroidered with two tones of silver sequins. The unusual colour made the already distinctive wide-shouldered gown stand out even further and put King squarely in the evening’s other big trend — head-turning shades of colour.

The boldest and brightest of the bunch were clad in red: Amanda Seyfried (‘Mank’) in a stunner of a hibiscus strapless ball gown of plissé tulle from the spring and summer 2021 Giorgio Armani Privé collection.

Angela Bassett wowed in a crepe off-the-shoulder Alberta Ferretti gown with draped organza shoulder.

Olivia Colman (‘The Father’) in a Dior Haute Couture silk dress.

Reese Witherspoon in an asymmetrical silk dress (also Dior).

Others dressed brightly enough to be seen from outer space included Colman Domingo (‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’) in an Atelier Versace three-piece suit in a cornea-searing shade of pink.

Zendaya, who turned up in a midriff-baring fluorescent yellow silk chiffon gown by Valentino.

Glenn Close (‘Hillbilly Elegy’), whose custom Giorgio Armani Privé ensemble pairing a vibrant blue long-sleeved tunic encrusted with crystals with midnight-blue silk cigarette trousers and evening gloves looked as comfortable and effortless as it was colorful. And outshone her twerking at the awards.

While Travon Free (‘Two Distant Strangers’) definitely turned heads with his colourful three-piece Dolce & Gabbana tuxedo that paired black trousers and a shirt with a black jacket with contrasting yellow lapels and yellow bow tie, it was the jacket’s lining that made the most indelible visual of the night. That’s because when he opened it wide on the red carpet, visible were the names of victims of police violence, including Philando Castile, Daunte Wright, Tamir Rice and Stephon Clark.